DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Biogeography of Sumatra and The Mentawai Islands: Phylogeographic Studies of Southeast Asian Flying Lizards (Agamidae: Draco)

University Of California-Berkeley, Berkeley CA

Investigators

Abstract

The Mentawai Archipelago and adjacent islands lie in the Indian Ocean west of the Indonesian mega-island of Sumatra. These islands have been separated from Sumatra and the remainder of insular and mainland Asia for at least 250,000 years and are consequently inhabited by an assemblage of endemic species found nowhere else. Although the few taxa that have been studied intensively exhibit a high degree of endemism, most of the Mentawei biota remains largely or completely unstudied. This study will investigate species diversification and the history of inter-island connectivity of Sumatra and the Mentawai Islands fauna by applying phylogenetic and biogeographic methodologies, along with recently developed coalescent-based population genetic approaches. The taxonomic focus of this study is a spectacular group of gliding lizards (genus Draco) that is diverse in this region. This study is scientifically significant because it will be the first to utilize rigorous molecular analyses to answer questions regarding non-primate faunal distributions in this highly diverse, yet understudied biological system. Furthermore, the results from this study will provide baseline data for conservation efforts directed towards these biodiverse islands. The fieldwork associated with this study will be conducted in collaboration with the University of Indonesia, and will provide opportunities for Indonesian undergraduates to receive training in field methodologies. The molecular component of the study will be carried out with the help of undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley, providing them with laboratory skills and engaging them in the process of scientific research.