Biodiversity in neotropical mountains: macroecological patterns of madicolous insects' community and taxonomy of Chironomidae (Diptera, Insecta)

Abstract

This project aims to address taxonomic and ecologic aspects of madicolous insects in large spatial scale. Specifically, it aims at evidencing madicolous-dwellers Chironomidae species in Brazilian mountains, establishing new records (geographic and altitudinal) and describing new species through the morphological and molecular analysis of larvae, pupae and adults. Further, important ecological hypotheses that explain the patterns of latitudinal and altitudinal variation of biological communities - such as the Rapoport Effect, the Mid Domain Effect, the Mountain Passes are Higher in the Tropics - will be tested through the analysis of the madicolous insects' community. Amazonian and Atlantic mountain chains were chosen due to the high latitudinal distance existing between them (0 and 23ºS, respectively) and their high altitudinal extension (100-2900 and 0-2800 m a.s.l., respectively). The data from the mountains at higher latitude have already been gathered during the PhD of the candidate and include about 70 sampling sites along the complete altitudinal gradient. Two field expeditions are proposed to investigate the far North mountains of the national territory, following previous methodology. Besides contributing to the knowledge on the diversity of two of the richest and threatened biomes in the world, this project aims to highlight the faunistic and ecological importance of the madicolous habitats, still poorly known, especially in Neotropical region. Moreover, the study of mountains allows the understanding of the processes that lead to diversity patterns in large spatial scales, a matter still controversial for the aquatic insects' community. (AU)