Summary
The recent International Panel for Climate Change (IPCC-AR6) report warns that high mountains in Asia will witness a drastic rise in temperature, precipitation and reduced snow cover by the middle of the 21st century, which will seriously threaten its rich biodiversity. The Himalaya, the highest mountain chain on Earth and one of the world’s most biodiverse regions, spans two biodiversity hotspots that are particularly sensitive to anthropogenic activities. Despite the effects of a changing environment, the evolution of present-day biodiversity patterns remain poorly explored. Previous research has mainly focused on orogenesis and monsoons as key factors governing the assembly of regional diversity, while their relative roles on species diversification are less explored or studied separately. Few eco-evolutionary studies exist for Himalaya, and most of them are based on the inferences from time-calibrated phylogenetic trees of single taxa or simplistically link node ages to contested uplift phases.
This project aims to generate a new paleoelevation profile for the Himalayan mountains. For this, it will: i) Disentangle the relative roles of mountain uplift, temperature and precipitation through a macroevolutionary analysis of four selected plant lineages in conjunction with a newly developed paleoelevation reconstruction (by assessing fossil pollen assemblages and testing the chemical composition of selected taxa); ii) integrate macroevolution and uplift history with species distribution models to identify areas of high speciation; iii) assess the impact of future climate changes on these hotspots.
The cross-disciplinary approach (involving paleobotany, phylogeny, macroevolution, and species distribution modeling) is unique for the Himalaya region. The project will provide novel insights into understanding the pace of the Himalayan uplift and its influences on plant diversification, and conservation strategies to preserve its unique biodiversity.
This project aims to generate a new paleoelevation profile for the Himalayan mountains. For this, it will: i) Disentangle the relative roles of mountain uplift, temperature and precipitation through a macroevolutionary analysis of four selected plant lineages in conjunction with a newly developed paleoelevation reconstruction (by assessing fossil pollen assemblages and testing the chemical composition of selected taxa); ii) integrate macroevolution and uplift history with species distribution models to identify areas of high speciation; iii) assess the impact of future climate changes on these hotspots.
The cross-disciplinary approach (involving paleobotany, phylogeny, macroevolution, and species distribution modeling) is unique for the Himalaya region. The project will provide novel insights into understanding the pace of the Himalayan uplift and its influences on plant diversification, and conservation strategies to preserve its unique biodiversity.
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More information & hyperlinks
| Web resources: | https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101108953 |
| Start date: | 15-01-2024 |
| End date: | 14-01-2026 |
| Total budget - Public funding: | - 203 464,00 Euro |
Cordis data
Original description
The recent International Panel for Climate Change (IPCC-AR6) report warns that high mountains in Asia will witness a drastic rise in temperature, precipitation and reduced snow cover by the middle of the 21st century, which will seriously threaten its rich biodiversity. The Himalaya, the highest mountain chain on Earth and one of the world’s most biodiverse regions, spans two biodiversity hotspots that are particularly sensitive to anthropogenic activities. Despite the effects of a changing environment, the evolution of present-day biodiversity patterns remain poorly explored. Previous research has mainly focused on orogenesis and monsoons as key factors governing the assembly of regional diversity, while their relative roles on species diversification are less explored or studied separately. Few eco-evolutionary studies exist for Himalaya, and most of them are based on the inferences from time-calibrated phylogenetic trees of single taxa or simplistically link node ages to contested uplift phases.This project aims to generate a new paleoelevation profile for the Himalayan mountains. For this, it will: i) Disentangle the relative roles of mountain uplift, temperature and precipitation through a macroevolutionary analysis of four selected plant lineages in conjunction with a newly developed paleoelevation reconstruction (by assessing fossil pollen assemblages and testing the chemical composition of selected taxa); ii) integrate macroevolution and uplift history with species distribution models to identify areas of high speciation; iii) assess the impact of future climate changes on these hotspots.
The cross-disciplinary approach (involving paleobotany, phylogeny, macroevolution, and species distribution modeling) is unique for the Himalaya region. The project will provide novel insights into understanding the pace of the Himalayan uplift and its influences on plant diversification, and conservation strategies to preserve its unique biodiversity.
Status
SIGNEDCall topic
HORIZON-MSCA-2022-PF-01-01Update Date
31-07-2023
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