| Abstract Detail
Conservation Biology Garrison, Laura M. [1], Fritsch, Peter W. [1], Miller, Jeremy A. [2], Bartholomew, Bruce [1]. Biodiversity of the Gaoligongshan Project. The Gaoligongshan mountain range is a heretofore relatively poorly known biodiversity hotspot in western Yunnan province, China, and adjacent eastern Myanmar. Over the past 10 years, this collaborative research program has produced extensive collections of plant, vertebrate, and arthropod taxa from a region recognized internationally as a conservation priority. Collections from the region include approximately 26,000 vascular and 8,000 non-vascular plant accessions. Several new taxa have been described from these collections and many records represent occurrences new to the region and in some cases new to China. The current major project goal is to compile collections data gathered during this survey into a landmark comparative biodiversity assessment. The results of the study will be disseminated in the form of a major collaborative publication and as a powerful interactive online tool. The online tool will be a user-friendly, data-driven website that allows users to access distribution data linked to Google Maps, as well as additional information such as collection information, photographs, monographs, and Tree of Life species pages. Analyses will integrate the latest geographical analysis and quantitative biodiversity methods to synthesize the results of our inventory and explore patterns of biodiversity. Initial quantitative biodiversity analysis (of spider data, using both abundance based and incidence based biodiversity estimators) suggests a high degree of endemism in the Gaoligongshan. Subsequent analyses of plant groups as well as synthetic analyses across all taxon groups will provide invaluable information on the distribution of biodiversity, both geographically and with respect to taxon groups that have been traditionally used to identify biodiversity hotspots (vertebrates, vascular plants) and those that have been used less frequently (arthropods, non-vascular plants). This information has the potential not only to shape conservation decisions in the Gaoligongshan, but to inform sampling design and the delineation of conservation priorites in other regions.
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1 - California Academy of Sciences, Department of Botany, 55 Music Concourse Drive, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA, 94118-4503, USA
2 - Nationaal Natuurhistorisch Museum Naturalis, Department of Entomology, Postbus 9517 2300 RA , Leiden, The Netherlands
Keywords:
China
Biodiversity
Yunnan
Gaoligongshan.
Presentation Type: Poster:Posters for Topics
Session: P1
Location: Event Tent/Cliff Lodge
Date: Monday, July 27th, 2009
Time: 5:30 PM
Number: P1CB003
Abstract ID:765 |
