The Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change is working with the Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador (PUCE) in Quito to establish a science centre for research into biodiversity in Ecuador. The Ecuadorian-German Integrative Biodiversity Research Centre (EGiB) will work with a network of research institutions to further develop the scientific infrastructure in one of the world's most important and at the same time highly endangered biodiversity hotspots.
The project, which has just been launched in February, will initially be funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research for three years, followed by a consolidation phase. "We want to establish a long-term partnership between German and Ecuadorian researchers," emphasises EGiB project leader Prof. Dr Bernhard Hausdorf from the LIB.
While the transformation of nature in Ecuador is progressing rapidly, countless species have yet to be discovered. Ecuador is characterised by an extremely high diversity of ecosystems. 64 out of 91 are forest ecosystems. There are dry steppes and plateaus, rocky Andean peaks and tropical forests along the Amazon. Climate change is having a particularly negative impact on biodiversity in this mosaic of biozones. Diversity is dwindling.
LIB researchers have been involved in projects in Ecuador for almost five years, including LIB collection manager and co-EGiB project manager Nadine Dupérré: "We have already gained extensive experience here and built up a base. We are now going one step further with the science centre. This cooperation is significantly larger and more long-term than our previous projects."
The science centre will offer local and international researchers an infrastructure and services for their work: For example, there will be help with applying for permits, setting up collaborations and organising joint excursions. Researchers will also have access to the morphological and molecular laboratories and biobanks of the PUCE as well as to the field stations and collections of the Zoological Museum in Quito (QCAZ) with its two million specimens.
A great deal of pooled knowledge from different areas of the LIB is being channelled into the project, including experience in biodiversity monitoring and conservation research.
Scientists from molecular biodiversity research at the LIB are contributing their knowledge to research into infectious and chronic diseases that are transmitted from animals to humans (such as Chagas, dengue). The CISeAL Centre for Research on health in Latin America is researching this and is an important project partner.
Another important focus of the project is the training of Ecuadorian researchers and students, particularly in animal groups where there is little local expertise to date, such as spiders or snails. As part of the project, a course in biodiversity research and systematics will be offered as part of a Master's programme at the PUCE.
"With the extensive knowledge from our centre, we are laying the foundation and building a network," says Bernhard Hausdorf. "In the long term, the science centre will be supported by new sources of funding. Acceptance and use of the centre by a large number of researchers from Germany and Ecuador will be crucial here."
