Dimensions of Biodiversity

Brief Project Description

We are working on a collaborative NSF grant focusing on the dimensions of biodiversity. We aim to create a new molecular phylogeny that can be used to test whether assemblages of freshwater planktonic green algae across North America are more genetically diverse than predicted by chance. This project will involve experimental manipulation of the evolutionary and genetic divergence of species to assess how these aspects of biological diversity control niche differences and community productivity. Subsequently, transcriptome analyses will be conducted to identify the genetic basis of niche differentiation among species, and relate these to the production of biomass by phytoplankton communities.

This project is part of a collaboration between the Cardinale Lab at U. Michigan, the Delwiche Lab of U. Maryland and the Oakley Lab at UCSB.

Interdisciplinary Approach

Community Phylogenetics

Predicted Outcomes