U.S.-Japan Cooperative Research: A Study of the Higher Classification of the Genera of Alticinae

该奖项将支持哈佛大学比较动物学博物馆昆虫学部David Furth博士和日本富山大学生物学系铃木邦夫教授之间为期两年的美日合作研究项目。该项目涉及对保存在日本的昆虫标本的联合研究，重点是金龟子的收集，特别是所谓的Alticinae亚科的“跳甲”。调查人员将致力于通过描述区分物种和属的可靠形态特征来升级该组的基本分类学。Furth博士和Suzuki教授都是蝶形动物形态和系统学方面的专家，尤其是在这一特征同余研究中使用的特征方面。弗思博士将与铃木教授一起在日本旅行三个月，研究日本收藏的亚洲跳甲虫属。这项研究将证明特征相关性(同余)在系统生物学系统发育研究中的作用，并将揭示Galerucinae/Alticinae的关系，为在Alticinae中建立部落系统提供基础。

This award will support a two-year U.S.-Japan cooperative research project between Dr. David Furth, Department of Entomology, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, and Professor Kunio Suzuki, Department of Biology, Toyama University, Japan. The project involves joint study of the insect specimens housed in Japan, focusing on the collections of chrysomelids, including especially the so-called "flea beetles" of subfamily Alticinae. The investigators will undertake to upgrade the basic taxonomy of the group by describing the reliable morphological characters for distinguishing species and genera. Dr. Furth and Professor Suzuki are experts on chrysomelid morphology and systematics, especially with the characters to be used in this character congruence study. Dr. Furth will spend three months travelling in Japan with Professor Suzuki to study the Asian flea beetle genera available in collections in Japan. This study will demonstrate the usefulness of correlation of characters (congruence) to phylogenetic research in systematic biology and will eluicdate the Galerucinae/Alticinae relationship and provide the foundation for creating a tribal system in the Alticinae.