Dimensions of Biodiversity NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION CO-FUNDED BY 2010–2015 PROJECTS Introduction 4 Project Abstracts 2015 8 Project Updates 2014 30 Project Updates 2013 42 Project Updates 2012 56 Project Updates 2011 72 Project Updates 2010 88 FRONT COVER IMAGES A B f g h i k j C l m o n q p r D E IMAGE CREDIT THIS PAGE FRONT COVER a MBARI & d Steven Haddock f Steven Haddock k Steven Haddock o Carolyn Wessinger Peter Girguis e Carolyn g Erin Tripp l Lauren Schiebelhut p Steven Litaker b James Lendemer Wessinger h Marty Condon m Lawrence Smart q Sahand Pirbadian & c Matthew L. Lewis i Marty Condon n Verity Salmon Moh El-Naggar j Niklaus Grünwald r Marty Condon FIELD SITES Argentina France Singapore Australia French Guiana South Africa Bahamas French Polynesia Suriname Belize Germany Spain Bermuda Iceland Sweden Bolivia Japan Switzerland Brazil Madagascar Tahiti Canada Malaysia Taiwan China Mexico Thailand Colombia Norway Trinidad Costa Rica Palau United States Czech Republic Panama United Kingdom Dominican Peru Venezuela Republic Philippines Labrador Sea Ecuador Poland North Atlantic Finland Puerto Rico Ocean Russia North Pacific Ocean Saudi Arabia COLLABORATORS Argentina Finland Palau Australia France Panama Brazil Germany Peru Canada Guam Russia INTERNATIONAL PARTNERS Chile India South Africa China Brazil China Indonesia Sri Lanka (NSFC) (FAPESP) Colombia Japan Sweden Costa Rica Kenya United Denmark Malaysia Kingdom Ecuador Mexico ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Many NSF staff members, too numerous to We thank Mina Ta and Matthew Pepper for mention individually, assisted in the development their graphic design contribution to the abstract and implementation of the Dimensions of booklet. Finally we are grateful to AAAS Science Biodiversity competitions that resulted in and Technology Policy Fellows Drs. Sara Chun, the projects described herein. We thank and Sean M. Watts, Karen Alroy, and Rachel S. Meyer congratulate the Dimensions of Biodiversity who were most helpful in the strategic planning for investigators for their creativity and achievements the Dimensions of Biodiversity program and the in the research and coordination activities that production of this abstract booklet. these projects represent. phylogenetic context to reveal how biodiversity is shaped over About the Program time. For instance, researchers using phylogeny can ask: Why have some species endured time while others did not? What The Dimensions of Biodiversity program is interactions, conditions, or events provided opportunities now in its sixth year of research support to for diversification? And of peak interest is how do genetic distances that separate species in phylogeny relate to the characterize the least-well-known aspects different roles, appearances, life histories, and behaviors we of the diversity of life on Earth. The National observe? Despite centuries of study, we still have much to learn about the origin, maintenance, and function of diversity. Science Foundation (NSF) funded 10 new projects in fiscal year 2015 bringing the total The functional roles of all these aspects of diversity are hardly understood. Dimensions researchers are making the number of funded projects to 77. connections from genetic diversity to gene function, and from The majority of the planet’s biological diversity has yet to be explored. With estimates hovering around 12 million existing global species, and with only about 15% of those described to date, there is a bounty of exciting discovery to be made that This year’s Dimensions of Biodiversity investigators can have major impacts on human wellbeing, technology, food join an international and multidisciplinary network security, and the health of planet Earth. of scientists who, through cutting-edge and integrative approaches, are transforming our Beyond taxonomic investigation of the planet’s species, understanding of biodiversity. genetic diversity within even a single species can be vast. The tremendous variation among domestic dog breeds illustrates this: genetic diversity of populations can express major James Olds differences in appearance, behavior, lifespan, and metabolic Assistant Director physiological adaptations to radically different environments. NSF Biological Sciences Directorate The Dimensions of Biodiversity program is a platform for exploration of species and population-level diversity, recognizing that genetic diversity are best understood in a STREAMS OF ACTIVITY 2020 GOALS An integrated understanding of the key but unknown dimensions of Research biodiversity on Earth Informatics and infrastructure that support accessible, interoperable Cyberinfrastructure information capability for Dimensions of Biodiversity Digitization of collections and enhanced physical infrastructure to link to Collections cyberinfrastructure and leverage the enormous investments of the past A diverse, interdisciplinary, globally-engaged, scientific workforce capable of Workforce transforming and communicating our understanding of biodiversity on Earth Scientific analyses and syntheses that generate and disseminate useful Synthesis information for scientists, educators and decision makers Planning & Base lining & Assessing Aligning investments APPROACH partnering synchronizing progress with emerging priorities 4 Phylogenetic Understanding the diversity of life on land and in the sea is critical as our environment changes. This year’s Dimensions of Biodiversity projects include important but poorly known branches of animals and microorganisms in understudied regions of the oceans. TARGET Roger Wakimoto Genetic Functional Assistant Director NSF Geosciences Directorate the expression of traits to their effects on our environment. unique human- and cyber-infrastructure challenges of an Many are assessing the impacts of diversity on ecosystems interdisciplinary network of researchers. Dimensions previously over time. And many are pioneering studies that help partnered with NASA to fund projects that use remote close the loop: what impact does the feedback from those sensing technologies to expand biodiversity investigations environmental functions have on species and communities? across broad spatial and temporal scales. Current The projects supported through the Dimensions of international partnerships with the National Natural Science Biodiversity program have applied creative integration of Foundation of China (NSFC) and The São Paulo Research phylogenetic, genetic, and functional studies to ask grand Foundation (FAPESP) support the exchange of students and questions about life on Earth that single-discipline studies scientists, joint research projects, and university partnerships. cannot approach. Through these developments and intellectual partnerships, this 10-year Dimensions of Biodiversity program is redefining Addressing the substantial knowledge gaps in our the way we understand the evolutionary and ecological understanding of biodiversity requires new thinking and significance of biodiversity in today’s changing environment, a coordinated effort among several sub-disciplines of and in the deep geologic past. biology. The Dimensions of Biodiversity program is actively developing the workforce and partnerships necessary for the GEO/OCE GEO/OCE PARTNERS PROJECTS OTHER NSF SHIP COSTS SCIENCE BIO NASA (N) US TOTAL CHINA (C) BRAZIL (B) FY 2010 16 $2.9M $9.3M $18.9M $31.1M ¥750k FY 2011 12 $6.5M $1.5M $2.5M $17.5M $28.0M ¥610k FY 2012 C, B, N 14 $3.2M $168K $2M $22.8M $720k $29M ¥6M R$2.8M FY 2013 C, B, N 13 $1M $21.7M $2.5M $25.2M ¥3M R$2.7M FY 2014 C, B 12 $1M $22.5M $23.5M ¥3M R$3.1M FY 2015 C, B 10 $3.6M $2.5M $17.7M $23.8M ¥3M FY 2016 C, B Up to ¥3M Up to $2M 5 Dimensions of Biodiversity Broader Impacts New Image CITIZEN Taxonomic Soil Experimental Biodiversity Analysis SCIENCE Thesaurus Gradients Techniques Treatments Through dimensions projects are Remote Climate Herbaria Fungal Gradients connected with... Sensing Ecologists Vascular Plants R Terrestrial Programming Symbiotic Mammals Intertidal Organisms Zone Early Carbon Career Monitoring Decision Environmental Scientists Makers Engineering DATABASE Climate Undergraduate Single Cell Flowering Research Change CURATION Genomics Plants Scenarios Through dimensions projects are Arabian Soil Oxygen Arthropod Sea Organic Diversity connected with... Matter Minimum Zone Extinction Adaptive Coral Extreme Risk Radiation Reefs Weather Events The Barro New York Parallel Deep Colorado Botanical Subsurface Sequencing Island Garden 6 UNDERGRADUATE Plant Oxygen AND GRADUATE Herbaria Nutrient Pathogens Minimum EDUCATION Ratios Zone Through dimensions Isotope Copepods Ratios projects are Dry connected with... Genomics Valleys Subtropical Indian Deep Ocean Shale Phytoplankton Extinction Diversity Microbiome Science Risk Festivals K-12 EDUCATION Color Community Pattern Avian Nitrogen Divergence Engagement malaria Cycling Through dimensions projects are Trophic connected with... Coastal Microbial Elevation Interactions ranges Ecosystems Sciences Plant Mating Drought Weather Adaptive Station Systems Tolerance Radiation Data Soil Wild Genetic The Pacific Organic Nightshades Architecture Northwest Matter 7 Diversification The phylogenetic and Life at extremes: dynamics of functional diversity of Linking the phylogenetic multitrophic extracellular electron and genomic diversity interactions in transfer across all of ctenophores to tropical communities three domains of life ecophysiological a b c adaptations in the deep sea The evolution of Biodiversity gradients Community genomic pollination syndrome