Origins, maintenance, and loss of biodiversity

我的研究重点是与生物多样性的起源、维持和丧失有关的因素。引进物种是对本地生物多样性的重大威胁，但我们往往不知道它们入侵的遗传基础，也不知道它们如何对本地物种产生负面影响。拟议的研究将：(i)重建有毒物种（信号小龙虾）的历史传播路线；（ii）记录信号小龙虾对三刺鱼的影响；（三）提高我们对粗皮蝾螈毒素产生的理解。为了实现这些目标，我们将结合现场和实验室的方法。通过使用中性遗传标记，我们的目标是确定入侵物种的身份和起源，并描述它如何通过空间和时间传播到目前的范围限制。信号小龙虾原产于不列颠哥伦比亚省大陆，但直到上个世纪初才出现在温哥华岛，在那里，它与一对独特的湖边三刺鱼物种的消失有关。（ii）捕食者对本地物种的进化影响不列颠哥伦比亚省海岸的三刺鱼已经对幼种的适应速度和模式产生了许多见解，但正受到入侵物种的威胁。为了更好地了解对独居三刺鱼种群的威胁，我们将描述引入物种对生态和进化的影响。具体来说，我们将描述生活在信号小龙虾存在/不存在的情况下的种群生态的各个方面，目的是确定可能面临局部灭绝风险的种群。（三）粗皮蝾螈产生毒素的遗传基础本地的袜带蛇捕食多种物种，包括本地的粗皮蝾螈，它拥有与致命的河豚河豚鱼相同的毒素（河豚毒素）。尽管蛇-蝾螈的相互作用对我们理解共同进化很重要，但我们对蝾螈毒素产生的遗传基础知之甚少。我们将使用分子方法来确定遗传密码的哪些部分是用来产生这种毒素的。在相关调查中，我们调查了信号小龙虾的传播是否与不列颠哥伦比亚省沿海蝾螈毒素水平的变化有关。入侵物种在加拿大所有主要地区都是一个重要且日益受到关注的问题，这项研究计划将促进我们对入侵物种的生态学和进化及其对两种本地物种的影响的理解。该研究项目还将为14名高素质人才（2名博士研究生、3名硕士研究生、9名本科生）提供培训机会，使他们在生命科学领域具有竞争力。

My research program focuses on factors associated with the origins, maintenance and loss of biodiversity. Introduced species are a significant threat to native biodiversity, yet we often do not know about the genetic basis of their invasiveness or how they negatively impact native species. The proposed research will: (i) reconstruct historical routes of spread in a noxious species (signal crayfish); (ii) document effects of signal crayfish on threespine stickleback; and (iii) improve our understanding of toxin production in the rough-skinned newt. To achieve these goals, we will combine field and lab-based methods. Within the three objectives:(i) Population genetics of species experiencing range expansionsBy using neutral genetic markers, we aim to pinpoint the identity and origins of an invasive species, and characterize how it spread through space and time to its current range limits. Signal crayfish is native to mainland British Columbia, but appears to have been absent from Vancouver Island until the turn of the last century, where it is implicated in the loss of a unique pair of lake-dwelling threespine stickleback species.(ii) Evolutionary effects of predators on native speciesThreespine stickleback on the coast of British Columbia have yielded many insights into the pace and mode of adaptation in young species, but are under threat from invasive species. To better understand threats to solitary threespine stickleback populations, we will characterize ecological and evolutionary impacts of introduced species. Specifically, we will characterize various aspects of the ecology of populations living in the presence/absence of signal crayfish, with the goal of identifying populations potentially at risk of local extinction.(iii) Genetic basis of toxin production in the rough-skinned newtNative garter snakes prey upon a variety of species, including the native rough-skinned newt, which possesses the same toxin (tetrodotoxin) that is found in the deadly fugu puffer fish. Despite the importance of the snake-newt interaction for our understanding of coevolution, we know very little about the genetic basis of toxin production in newts. We will use molecular methods to determine which parts of the genetic code are used to produce this toxin. In related investigations, we investigate whether the spread of signal crayfish is associated with changes in newt toxin levels along the coast of British Columbia.Invasive species are a significant and growing concern in all major regions of Canada, and this research program will advance our understanding of the ecology and evolution of an invasive species and its effects on two native species. The research program will also provide training opportunities for 14 highly qualified personnel (two PhD students, three MSc students, and nine undergraduate project students), making them competitive for careers in the life sciences.