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Planetary Biodiversity Inventory (PBI)
Michael Schwarz from the American Museum of Natural History. Photo: M Elliott.
Plant Bug. Family Miridae. Photo M. Bulbert.
The Planetary Biodiversity Inventory (PBI) is funded by the United States National Science Foundation to document the biodiversity of the planet. The Australian Museum, in conjunction with the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), has been awarded funding to collect, catalogue and investigate the Miridae (Plant Bugs) subfamilies Orthotylinae and Phylinae. These taxa have been chosen because they satisfy the PBI criteria of:
- monophyly (they come from a single ancestral form)
- global distribution
- a majority of the species are host specific
- they show similar patterns of distribution on a global scale
The outcomes of this study will allow for tests of theories in evolutionary biology that incorporate knowledge of phylogeny ( the evolutionary history of a kind or type of organism) and classification. These include:
- the evolution of plant-animal relationships (eg. co-evolution)
- ant-mimicry origins and maintenance
- endemism and historical biogeography on a global scale and a considerable span of geological time
- an estimation of biodiversity hot-spots
Work has already begun on the project, with the arrival of Michael Schwarz from the AMNH here at the Australian Museum. In January 2004 Michael went to Tasmania to collect new material for the project and obtained valuable new specimens. The imminent arrival of two PhD students will add further momentum to the PBI project.
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