Systematics and Biogeography of Scolecophidian Snakes

嗜脊柱侧突动物(盲蛇)是一种洞穴蛇，主要以蚂蚁、白蚁和它们的幼虫等小型群居昆虫为食。它们包括最小的蛇，分布在除南极洲以外的所有大陆，主要分布在热带和亚热带地区。由于他们的化石生活方式，他们是最鲜为人知的主要脊椎动物群体之一。研究表明，脊椎动物的物种多样性被大大低估了，因为区分物种的形态差异比平时要少，用传统方法更难检测到。该项目利用DNA序列和系统发育方法研究了脊椎动物种群和物种之间的关系，以便更好地了解该种群中隐藏的物种多样性以及物种如何在其范围内分布。该项目揭示了热带脊椎动物中隐藏的多样性的很大一部分，从而为生物多样性和保护工作带来了重大好处。大多数物种的小范围分布，加上它们日益衰落的森林栖息地，使它们成为环境健康的关键指标之一。更好地了解物种边界和关系也使这些生物更容易被其他生物学家研究，如生态学家、生理学家和保护生物学家。该项目涉及研究生和本科生的实地和实验室培训。

Scolecophidians ("blind snakes") are burrowing snakes that feed primarily on small, social insects such as ants, termites, and their larvae. They include the smallest snakes and are distributed on all continents except Antarctica, primarily in tropical and subtropical regions. Due to their fossorial lifestyle, they are among the most poorly-known major groups of vertebrates. Studies have suggested that scolecophidian species diversity is greatly underestimated because the morphological differences separating species are fewer than usual and harder to detect with conventional methods. This project investigates the relationships of populations and species of scolecophidians using DNA sequences and phylogenetic methods, in order to better understand hidden species diversity within the group and how species became distributed throughout their range.This project confers significant benefits for biodiversity and conservation efforts by revealing a large component of hidden diversity within tropical vertebrates. The small distributions of most species, combined with their declining forest habitats, place them among the key indicators of environmental health. A better understanding of species boundaries and relationships also makes these organisms more accessible for study to other biologists, such as ecologists, physiologists, and conservation biologists. The project involves both field and laboratory training of graduate and undergraduate students.