An evolutionary perspective on pollinator biodiversity, systematics, and conserv

[John S.]

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Co-organizers: John S. Ascher1, Natapot Warrit2, Michael C. Orr3,4

1School of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
2 Center of Excellence in Entomology and Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.
3Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
4Entomologie, Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany.

Proposal summary:
There is heightened global interest in pollinator conservation, especially for insects, but studies on them remain relatively limited in Asia. Further, even at the global scale, very few such studies integrate both evolutionary and ecological dynamics, despite their joint importance and mutual influence on one another. Consequently, these knowledge gaps prevent effective conservation of pollinators and the critical ecosystem services that they provide. In this symposium, we will share case studies across Asia and the globe that delve deeper into the complexities of pollinator evolutionary ecology and the resources needed for such studies. Our talks span the range of both invertebrate and vertebrate pollinators, with foci ranging from the need for and potential of biodiversity data to the large-scale analysis of phylogenomic datasets. Only by bringing these disparate data types together can we build a truly comprehensive view of the conservation landscapes and imperatives in Asia and worldwide.

Confirmed talks: 8×15 mins.
15 mins: Alice C. Hughes – Eco-Evolutionary dynamics of vertebrate pollinators, especially bats
15 mins: Natapot Warrit – Building a barcode reference library and occurrence database for Thailand bees
15 mins: Xin Zhou – Honey bee genomics and conservation: new species and new challenges
15 mins: Michael C. Orr – Biodiversity data and a unified data structure incorporating ecological and molecular data as key to conservation

Topic