DISSERTATON RESEARCH: Genetic diversification of mesic treefrogs in a dry Neotropical savanna: Next-Gen sequencing uncovers the roles of environment, paleoclimate, and geography

稀树草原是最多样化但研究不足的生态系统之一，由于这些地区很容易转变为农业，因此受到严重威胁。巴西的稀树草原是地球上最大的稀树草原，保护和管理剩下的稀树草原上的生物群需要记录产生和维持这种生物多样性的进化和生态因素。树蛙是这项研究的优秀模型，因为它们对植被类型、温度和湿度水平高度敏感。因此，这些物种数量的减少很快揭示了气候的变化。利用计算机建模的新方法来描述大规模的环境，以及DNA技术的进步，这项研究将评估青蛙种群的遗传健康与它们不断变化的环境和生存前景的关系。收集的各种数据来源将为有效保护和管理这些濒危栖息地和生物提供至关重要的基线信息。这些方法和研究方法将被转移到不同生态区域的其他生物群体中。该项目将极大地促进有国际合作者参与的综合性多学科研究，并将培养学生成为未来的科学家和科学教育者。

Savannas, which are among the most diverse but understudied ecosystems, are severely threatened due to the ease of converting these areas to agriculture. The savannas of Brazil are the largest on Earth, and conservation and management of the biota in the remaining savanna patches requires documenting the evolutionary and ecological factors that gave rise to and maintain this biodiversity. Treefrog species are excellent models for this research because they are highly sensitive to vegetation type, temperature, and humidity levels. Thus, climatic alteration is quickly revealed by declines in populations of these species. Using new methods in computer modeling that describe environments on a large scale, and advances in DNA technology, this research will assess the genetic well being of frog populations in relation to their changing environment and their prospects for survival.The diverse sources of data to be collected will provide baseline information critical to efficiently protect and manage these endangered habitats and biotas. These methods and research approaches will be transferrable to other groups of organisms in different ecological regions. This project will contribute significantly to promoting integrative, multidisciplinary research involving international collaborators, and will train students as future scientists and science educators.