Biosciences Science Club Events 13 April 2017

Biosciences Science Club Series - Spring 2017
13 April 2017 - 1pm - Zoology Museum

Biogeography and macroevolution of anuran amphibians in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest

Dr Diogo Borges Provette

(Universidade Federal de São Carlos, Brazil)

from: www.Brasilienportal.ch

We do have a visiting scientist from Brazil this week, Dr Diogo Borges Provette, FAPESP Post-doctoral fellow from the Department of Environmental Sciences at the Centre for Sciences and Technologies for Sustainability, at the Federal University of São Carlos in Sorocaba, Brazil. Diogo is also associated with the Gothenburg Global Biodiversity Centre in Sweden and is Editor for Amphibia-Reptilia at the Biodiversity Data Journal. Diogo is a community ecologist and his research focusses on three different strands - The causes and consequences of species diversity in freshwater ecosystems, eco-evolutionary feedbacks in metacommunity ecology, and the processes driving phenotypic evolution and diversification of Neotropical organisms. Diogo will present us recent work concerning the latter, focussed on understanding the processes leading to the formation of biodiversity hotspots.

Abstract

The Atlantic Forest (AF) along the east coast of Brazil is a global biodiversity hotspot, with many endemic species under threat. There have been many hypothesis to explain the causes of the current high species diversity in the AF, including Plio-Pleistocene refugia, topographic heterogeneity, and environmental gradients promoting ecological speciation. However, there is little consensus on the relative roles of these processes and how they could differentially influence vertebrate groups with distinct dispersal abilities. In this talk I will quickly review the current models to explain the astonishing biodiversity in the AF and show results of a past project developed at the University of Gothenburg and the ideas of my current post doc project in Brazil. 

Hope to see many of you - everyone most welcome to attend!


For the list of forthcoming Science Club Events, see here