This project will develop a classification and monographically revise species and higher-level groups of a tribe of beetles distributed in Australia, and the Americas. Over 100 new species are expected to be described in these taxa. The study will combine morphological and molecular analysis to produce taxonomic hypotheses, generic and species (re)descriptions and diagnoses, full illustrations for internal/external features, species range maps, habitat data, identification keys for genera and species in both internet/CD based and traditional printed forms, internet accessible specimen data and genus/species web pages. All Australian loxandrine species will be revised and described and tools for identification will be provided for non-specialist. This group of beetles will then be available for consideration in conservation planning.
The focus taxa of this study are a group of Australian Carabid beetles and this work will be the first major carabid clade in Australia to undergo cladistic analysis and modern classification. Australia is essential to our understanding of worldwide distribution patterns and these beetles are a good model taxon for such studies. In terms of evolutionary significance, this study will investigate reproductive biology and predator avoidance by chemical defense. Using the phylogenetic hypothesis and ecological information, the history of how defensive compound changes have occurred in this lineage will be brought to light.
This revisionary syntheses in systematics proposal for loxandrine carabid beetles will bring together data for specimens from major collections worldwide and then return to these collections sorted, identified and databased specimens. Distributional and life history data, and web-based and standard published tools for identification will be made available to all biologists. Monographic revision of these genera and the tools to identify specimens will allow non-systematist to identify these taxa and assess their occurrence in both ecological and historical terms. This will be a significant advance for a set of taxa presently completely unavailable for study.
The project integrates graduate and undergraduate students throughout by training them in field studies, specimen collection, preparation, insect morphology, sequence acquisition, data collection and phylogenetic analyses. Undergraduates will gain experience working in laboratory facilities and museum collections and will learn basic identification and insect morphology. Graduate students will be fully integrated into museum research, specimen collection, dissection, morphological and sequence analyses and development and implementation of web resources.
