Collaborative Research: Biotic Surveys of Central Saharan Oases

这个合作研究项目旨在全面调查利比亚和埃及孤立的沙漠绿洲的动物群。调查将侧重于脊椎动物和寄生虫的多样性，重点研究两栖动物、鱼类、爬行动物、软体动物、血吸虫和寄生虫。利用新的地理信息系统数据和地理参考历史记录，将绘制地中海和撒哈拉以南地区动物群之间的地理关系。随着包括组织样本在内的新标本的收集，长期存在的生物地理学假设将通过分子系统发育方法得到检验。通过对历史地点的重新考察，将提供有关最近干旱化导致的动物组成变化的重要新数据。对新的遗传、形态和生态数据的分析也将为难民种群的进化动态提供一个窗口，包括对极端环境的适应。标本、组织和数据将储存在可公开访问的美国博物馆收藏和数据库中，并将作为未来研究北非生物多样性的重要资源。关于寄生虫（包括血吸虫）和毒蛇的新分布数据将对管理人类健康产生直接影响。这些孤立的绿洲受到气候变化的威胁，包括由于水利用的区域变化而导致地下水位下降；调查人员的调查将引起人们对这些不可替代的生态系统的脆弱性的关注。通过与外国和美国博物馆的合作，利比亚和埃及的重要历史标本收藏将得到更新和整理。该项目包括不同的专业和机构，并将北非的研究人员和学生整合到实地考察和结果研究中。本科生和研究生将参与实地调查和后续研究。该项目将为进行分类修订、进行大范围的系统地理学研究以及应用分子遗传学工具解决非洲生物地理学中长期存在的问题提供资源。该项目由美国国家科学基金会国际科学与工程办公室共同资助。

This collaborative research project aims to survey comprehensively the fauna of isolated desert oases in Libya and Egypt. Surveys will focus on vertebrate and parasite diversity, with focal research on amphibians, fishes, reptiles, mollusks, and schistosome and hematozoan parasites. Using new GIS data and geo-referenced historical records, the geographical relationship between the Mediterranean and sub-Saharan faunas will be mapped. With a new collection of specimens that includes tissue samples, long-standing biogeographic hypotheses will be tested via molecular phylogenetic methods. By revisiting historical localities, important new data will be provided on changes in faunal composition driven by recent aridification. Analyses of new genetic, morphological, and ecological data will also provide a window into the evolutionary dynamics of refugial populations, including adaptation to extreme environments. Specimens, tissues, and data will be deposited in publicly accessible U.S. museum collections and databases and will serve as an important resource for future work on North African biodiversity. New distributional data on parasites, including schistosome worms, and on venomous snakes will have a direct effect on managing human health. These isolated oases are threatened by climate change, including a water table that is diminishing because of regional changes in water utilization; the investigators' surveys will draw attention to the fragility of these irreplaceable ecosystems. Through collaboration with foreign and U.S. museums, important historical specimen collections from Libya and Egypt will be updated and curated. This project includes diverse specialties and institutions, and integrates North African researchers and students in fieldwork and the resulting research. Undergraduate and graduate students will be included in both field surveys and subsequent research. This project will provide the resources for conducting taxonomic revisions, pursuing broad-scale phylogeographic studies, and applying molecular genetic tools to long-standing problems in African biogeography. This project is co-funded by the National Science Foundation's Office of International Science and Engineering.