Biodiversity study in tropical Asia remains in its infancy largely because the state of basic systematic research lags far behind other regions. This collaborative project will study the region's most diverse bird group, the babblers, in order to re-evaluate taxonomy, reconstruct evolutionary relationships, and assess the historical factors that influenced biological diversification in tropical Asia. The research will involve detailed study of museum collections, sequencing of mitochondrial and nuclear gene regions, and integration of phylogenetic and earth history data to produce the most detailed picture of avian diversification in tropical Asia to date.
The project will result in a more accurate assessment of biodiversity in tropical Asia and produce a robust framework of diversification patterns across the region. It complements ongoing biodiversity initiatives in the region and the results will be of immediate use to conservation biologists that are tasked with identifying unique and diverse faunas in order to prioritize areas for protection. The research will also provide significant educational opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students at the participating institutions, and increase public understanding of biodiversity issues through public exhibits and outreach programs at two natural history museums.
Our main goals for this project were to examine the systematics of a species-rich group of songbirds, the babblers (Timaliidae), and examine their diversification patterns across tropical Asia. During our funding period, we made significant advances in data collection, published several papers, presented at numerous scientific conferences, mentored students, traveled for collaborative meetings, and took part in various outreach activities. Intellectual merits: We collected DNA sequence data and morphometric measurements for the vast majority of babbler species, more than 300 distinct lineages. These data have been analyzed to produce several published scientific papers and additional papers are in preparation. We presented this research at seven scientific conferences including two student presentations, plus two invited lecturers, and organized one symposium on old world birds. We published a comprehensive phylogeny of the babbler family in which we showed that most genera of babblers are not monophyletic, again illuminating the need for systematic revision of this family. We also examined the biogeographic patterns of babblers and concluded that babblers originated in Asia and had multiple colonizations into surrounding regions (i.e. Africa, Sundaland, Philippines), however there are no back colonizations of these lineages returning to Asia. Other studies examined species limits, biogeography, environmental niche evolution and diversification patterns in tropical Asia. We also examined the phylogenetic relationships of other species from regions outside of Asia that were traditionally placed into the babbler family. We found that some species that were traditionally placed in the babbler family actually belong in several different songbird families. This again shows the difficulty with taxonomic classifications of birds, like the babblers, that are both ecologically and morphologically diverse. Broader impacts Throughout this project we trained five undergraduate students in the Reddy Lab at Loyola University Chicago. All students were trained in molecular systematics and laboratory techniques. Three students also gained experience measuring museum specimens for morphometric analysis. One of these undergraduates received a Fulbright Research Fellowship to conduct a project on babblers in Vietnam and subsequently enrolled in a PhD program in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. Another former student is currently applying for graduate programs in evolutionary biology. Two former students are currently in medical school. Of the five undergraduates three were female, two were Asian, and one was Muslim-American. All students presented their work in student conferences and two won travel awards to present in professional scientific meetings. One postdoctoral fellow was funded for one year. Aspects of this project were used in phylogenetic workshops conducted in India and Loyola University Chicago. Both international and national travel for meetings with collaborators and museum collection visits were conducted. Finally, this project was highlighted in exhibits and videos at the Field Museum of Natural History and in undergraduate courses at Loyola University Chicago.
