Explore, Explain, and Sustain! Newslett er Issue 1 November 2014 Welcome to the Inaugural Issue of our Newsletter! Welcome to the inaugural issue of the newsletter from the Finally, we are pleased to announce that we are resuming Institute of Biodiversity Science and Sustainability at the publication of the Proceedings of the California Academy California Academy of Sciences. We are excited to be part of Sciences. No time to sleep! We continue to welcome of a dynamic museum team that is growing, innovating, visitors and colleagues to the Academy, fulfilling our role and addressing pressing issues that relate to our core in next-generation science as we “explore the unexplored, strength: biodiversity. The research team at the Academy explain the unexplained, and sustain the unsustained.” currently manages approximately 45 million specimens and conducts research in more than 20 countries. Explore, Explain, and Sustain! This summer, the Academy welcomed our new Executive Director, Dr. Jonathan Foley, who has invited all of us to Meg Lowman participate in shaping the future of the Academy through Chief of Science his “Academy2020” program. This will include our IBSS & Sustainability ADVANCE (not a retreat, since we are looking forward!), the hiring of two new researchers, the acquisition of iNaturalist, which provides a great online platform for citizen science and biodiversity monitoring, and the launch of a major digitization initiative for our collections. Six of our long-serving, outstanding curators have accepted a voluntary retirement plan generously funded by our endowment, but we are thrilled that they will continue their important work under our roof as emeritus curators. The search begins this fall for the first replacement, our Schlinger Chair of Arachnology. Peter Roopnarine, Ph.D., Curator of Geology - Chief Editor Brian Simison, Ph.D, Curator of Genomics - Assistant Editor Charlotte Pfeiffer, Program Coordinator – Managing Editor Institute for Biodiversity Science and Sustainability 1 1 Explore, Explain, and Sustain Newsletter Issue 1 Research Briefs Six Named Curator Emeriti biodiversity hotspots and targets for Charles Griswold, More than 200 years of experience conservation decisions. Ph.D., Schlinger Chair Peter Roopnarine, Curator of Geology of Arachnology, Tom Daniel, Ph.D., Entomology. Charles This year has been one of big Curator, Botany. Tom changes for the Academy, and IBSS is one of the world’s has worked broadly leading experts on is no exception. In addition to the on the biogeography, arrival of Dr. Jonathan Foley, new spiders. His studies evolution, and include the discovery Executive Director, and Dr. Meg ecosystem roles of a Lowman, the new Chief of Science and description of wide variety of new taxa, and the and Sustainability, six of the IBSS’s plants. He has most senior curators also retired biogeography, phylogenetics and discovered and evolutionary biology of this important on September 30th. They include described dozens of Drs. Frank Almeda, Tom Daniel, Bob group. During his career he has new species, published more than 150 discovered and described 322 new Drewes, Charles Griswold, Dave scientific papers and monographs, and Kavanaugh, and John McCosker, who species, 45 new genera, and an developed comprehensive entirely new family of spiders. His together have served the Academy descriptions of one of the most for a total of more than 200 years. work includes his description in 2012 diverse plant families, the of a new genus and family of spiders Our colleagues have transitioned Acanthaceae. immediately to the status of Emeritus - Trogloraptor, found in Oregon caves. curator, and all have the opportunity Trogloraptoridae is the first new to continue with their research at family of spiders discovered in North Robert (Bob) America since the 1890s. the Academy with full access to IBSS Drewes, Ph.D., resources. Here, in our inaugural Curator, Herpetology. newsletter, we wish to thank, Bob’s research has Dave Kavanaugh, celebrate, and honor our colleagues. focused Ph.D., Senior Their stamps on the Academy, overwhelmingly on Curator, research at the Academy, and the the natural history Entomology. Dave’s broader communities of their areas and evolution of love and of expertise will be felt for years to African amphibians unparalleled come. Please join us in recognizing and reptiles, and he expertise are these outstanding individuals. is a legend of African fieldwork. After devoted to a family more than three decades of work on of predatory ground the African mainland, he shifted focus beetles, the Frank Almeda, Ph.D., to the poorly known Gulf of Guinea Carabidae. His fascination stems, in Senior Curator, Islands off west Africa. In addition to part, from their relative diversity and Decker and Martha leading numerous multidisciplinary abundance in cold, isolated places McAllister Chair of expeditions to the islands, he has where changes in the distribution of Botany. Frank is worked tirelessly with the local organisms are often early indicators of world-renowned for populations and government to wider environmental change. He his work on the further education and appreciation of specializes in a particular genus of family the islands’ biological resources. carabids, Nebria, relics from the Ice Melastomataceae, Those efforts culminated in the Age that have provided many addressing questions UNESCO designation of Principe Island surprising discoveries throughout his of botanical diversity, biogeography as a World Biosphere Reserve in 2013. research. In 1973, Dave stumbled and evolution, including the use of upon a brilliant purple beetle while plant families as indicators of walking along the Hoback River in Institute for Biodiversity Science and Sustainability 2 Explore, Explain, and Sustain Newsletter Issue 1 Research Briefs cont’d Wyoming. The closest relative of this find out how these two caecilians beetle, which he officially named species have evolved a reproductive Nebria beverlianna after his wife strategy that suits the weather in their Beverly, is found near glacial rivers in environment. Also we are passionate British Columbia and Alberta at much to learn about the diet of the two mentioned species and their place in higher elevations. Dave’s work has the food chain and how they impact been published in 24 different peer- other creatures that they interact with reviewed journals and as chapters in Cameroon Joins IBSS in their environment. Our findings 14 books. A Student and Curator Profile will inform scientists and stakeholders Charlotte Pfeiffer, Program Coordinator on the needs of caecilians for conservation purposes.” John McCosker, In spring of 2014, the Institute for Ph.D., Senior Curator Biodiversity Science and Sustainability What is the connection between and Chair, Aquatic welcomed it’s first graduate student Cameroon and the research at the Biology. During his from the west african country of Institute for Biodiversity Science and more than 40 years Cameroon. Marcel Talla Kouete was Sustainability? Blackburn says, “The with the Academy, born in Douala, which is located Academy brings strengths from IBSS in John served as in the coastal area of his home studying African biodiversity and from Director of Steinhart country. In Kouete’s early years in the Steinhart Aquarium in animal Aquarium for more Douala, through the early 1970’s husbandry to our work in Cameroon. than two decades, to the late 1980’s, the economy I first did field research in Cameroon was flourishing due to the shipping in 2004 and I’ve been working on as well as the Director of Business and industry off the coast of Cameroon. Finance, Director of Public Programs, the diversity of amphibians there His mother encouraged him to ever since. In the past ten years, and the Interim Executive Director on pursue his education and to pay our work has resulted in discovery two occasions. He eventually became rigorous attention to his schoolwork. of new species, documentation of the first Chair of Aquatic Biology, a He acknowledges the effect this conservation challenges, and new position he has held since 1995. His encouragement had on getting him understanding of the biology of frogs research concerns aquatic animal to where he is today at the university found in Central Africa. I’m particularly evolution and behavior, particularly level. Currently, Kouete is attending excited about being able to work that of snake eels, moray eels, sharks, the M.Sc. program at San Francisco with the Aquarium to learn about the and the fishes of the Galápagos State University. His advisor is David biology of critically endangered frog Islands. His studies of white sharks Blackburn, Ph.D., Associate Curator species from Cameroon.” Kouete in the Department of Herpetology in reminds us that his home country is (Carcharodon carcharias) have result- IBSS. ed in numerous technical and popular a unique biodiversity hot spot with well qualified locals who are willing publications, books, and documenta- Currently, Kouete is studying to reliably carry out field-based ries (NOVA, BBC, National Geographic, caecilians, which are the least experiments and share their accounts and others) have changed our under- known group among amphibians. with other researchers. There are also standing of white shark behavior and In his research, he will be looking the in-country connections between informed public safety policies and at the reproductive biology of two the Academy and local administrative legislation designed to protect the species Herpele