US-Pakistan Cooperative Research: Insect Diversity and Ecology at High Altitude: An Expedition to Hunza, Pakistan

描述：该奖项旨在支持佛罗里达州迈阿密佛罗里达国际大学生物科学系的David Smith博士和巴基斯坦伊斯兰堡巴基斯坦自然历史博物馆动物科学部的Syed Azhar Hasan博士的合作项目。他们计划对巴基斯坦北部喀喇昆仑罕萨地区的昆虫生物多样性和生态进行密集、全面的调查，并对当地/栖息地进行植物学和地质调查。重点放在中高海拔(8,000-18,000英尺)的地点，其中包括沿中巴边境的一条未经科学勘探的导线。该小组包括来自美国和英国的七名成员和来自巴基斯坦的七名成员，以及罕萨地区本身的一名居民，他们将进行为期五周的实地研究。收集的材料，加上额外的专业分类学工作，将包括准备材料，通过极端山区的地形隔离进行进化分化的分子遗传学研究。范围：美国团队负责人史密斯博士最近在巴基斯坦北部进行了蝴蝶分类工作，并熟悉该地区。该项目将扩大研究范围，涵盖各种其他昆虫，并将对中亚生物多样性、生物地理学和标本稀缺甚至不存在的生态学的研究做出重大贡献。关于这一未被研究地区的生物清单的数据将为1)对该地区的一般生物认识，2)与保护和生物多样性有关的决策，以及3)更广泛的系统、进化和生物地理专题作出重大贡献，喀喇昆仑的信息对这些专题至关重要。这个经验丰富的多国小组将采用不同的采样方法，使他们能够记录所访问地区的大部分昆虫区系。包括一名地质学家和植物学家在内的团队将通过提供寄主植物数据和样本地点的详细特征来提高昆虫收藏的价值。这一建议符合INT支持在共同感兴趣的领域进行合作研究的目标。国际项目部和环境生物学部支持这一项目

0002100SmithDescription: This award is to support a collaborative project by Dr. David Smith, Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, Florida, and Dr. Syed Azhar Hasan, Zoological Sciences Division, Pakistan Museum of Natural History, Islamabad, Pakistan. They plan an intensive, comprehensive survey of insect biodiversity and ecology of the Hunza region of the Karakoram in northern Pakistan, with botanical and geological investigation of localities/habitats. Emphasis is placed on medium-to-high elevation sites (8,000-18,000 ft) that include a scientifically unexplored traverse along the Sino-Pakistan border. The team, including seven members from the United States and the United Kingdom and seven from Pakistan, in addition to a resident of the Hunza area itself, will conduct field research for five weeks. Material collected, with additional specialist taxonomic work, will include preparation of material for molecular genetic investigation of evolutionary divergence through topographic isolation in extremely mountainous terrain.Scope: The US team leader, Dr. Smith, has done work recently on taxonomy of butterflies in northern Pakistan and is familiar with the region. This project will broaden the study to cover various other insects, and will be a major contribution to the study of Central Asian biodiversity, biogeography and ecology where specimens are scarce to nonexistent. Data on the biotic inventory in this unstudied region will provide significant contribution to 1) general biotic awareness of the region, 2) conservation and biodiversity related decision-making, and 3) broader systematic, evolutionary and biogeographic themes for which information from Karakoram is essential. This experienced multinational team will employ diverse sampling methods to enable them to document a large portion of the insect fauna of the areas visited. The inclusion of a geologist and botanist on the team will enhance the value of the insect collections by providing host plant data and detailed characterization of the sample localities. This proposal meets the INT objective of supporting collaborative research in areas of mutual interest. The Division of International Programs and the Division of Environmental Biology are supporting this project