Systematics and Influence of Coral Reefs on Diversification in Tetraodontiform Fishes

珊瑚礁鱼类是一群种类繁多的脊椎动物。它们的数量丰富，形状、大小和生态环境也非常不同。该项目将通过检查四齿形鱼类（包括河豚鱼、豪猪鱼和扳机鱼）的多样化模式和过程，研究珊瑚礁如何影响海洋鱼类的生物多样性。研究人员将通过分析DNA序列、关键形态特征和化石记录来构建这一群体的进化树。这棵树将为比较珊瑚礁和非珊瑚礁物种的鳍、体型和颌的进化速度提供一个框架。研究小组将测试珊瑚礁物种是否比非珊瑚礁物种更快地进化出了进食和游泳系统的变化，以及主要的进化变化是否与关键的历史事件相对应，比如航道关闭或气候快速变化的时期。这项工作将为了解珊瑚礁（地球上最独特的栖息地之一）如何塑造海洋鱼类的生物多样性提供重要的新见解。通过揭示古气候事件如何影响物种丰富度的历史模式，本研究将提高对人类引起的全球变化对珊瑚鱼生物多样性影响的理解。外联工作——包括指导、研讨会和讲习班——将为来自代表性不足的群体的新科学家提供培训，并推动在国家研究界使用新开发的分析方法。

Coral reef fishes are an astonishingly diverse group of vertebrates. They are rich in number and extraordinarily varied in shape, size, and ecology. This project will investigate how coral reefs have shaped marine fish biodiversity by examining diversification patterns and processes in tetraodontiform fishes (a group including pufferfishes, porcupine fishes, and triggerfishes). The investigators will construct an evolutionary tree for this group by analyzing DNA sequences, key morphological features, and the fossil record. This tree will provide a framework for comparing rates of evolution of fins, body shape, and jaws between reef and non-reef species. The research team will test whether reef species have evolved changes in their feeding and swimming systems more quickly than non-reef species and whether major evolutionary changes correspond with key historical events, such as the closing of sea-ways or periods of rapid climate change. This work will provide important new insights into how coral reefs, one of the planets most unique habitats, have shaped biodiversity in marine fishes. By revealing how paleoclimatic events have affected historical patterns of species richness, this study will improve the understanding of the impacts of human-caused global changes on reef fish biodiversity. Outreach efforts - including mentoring, seminars, and workshops - will provide training for new scientists from underrepresented groups and advance the use of newly developed analytical methods to the national research community.