Unraveling Darwin’s mystery of mysteries: Insights on the origin of species from birds of the Solomon Islands
Unraveling Darwin’s mystery of mysteries: Insights on the origin of species from birds of the Solomon Islands
The biological diversity we see today is the result of new species evolving and older ones going extinct. Therefore, to effectively conserve biodiversity, we need to understand both the processes that cause extinction and those that give rise to new species. For over two decades, Al’s work explores the origin of new species, a process Charles Darwin called the “mystery of mysteries.” He uses a combination of observational, experimental and, most recently, genomic approaches to determine how populations change to become new species. This talk will summarize on-going research in Al’s Lab, focusing on two projects: 1) a single species of Solomon Island flycatchers that is in the act of splitting into new species, and 2) two species of island honey-eatersrecently coming into physical contact. The talk will also outline his recent efforts to establish conservation programs to preserve endemic birds of the Solomon Islands.
Organizer
Al Uy is Professor of Biology at the University of Rochester (NY, USA). Al was born and raised in the Philippines, moving to the US in his early teens. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of California at Berkeley, and his doctorate degree from the University of Maryland at College Park. Before joining the University of Rochester, Al held faculty positions at San Francisco State University, Syracuse University and the University of Miami. For over 25 years, Al and his team, the “Trop Bio Lab”, have explored the ecology and evolution of avian biological diversity, working in Australia, New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, as well as Ecuador, Panama and Costa Rica. His work in the Solomon Islands is featured in “Islands of Creation”, a documentary produced by the Smithsonian Channel and now available to stream through Paramount+.