Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Due to their naturally fragmented distributions, alpine and arctic habitats are among the most fragile in the northern hemisphere and are heavily threatened by rapidly changing climatic conditions. While the influence of these changes has been at least partially studied in plants and vertebrates, little is known of their impacts on insects. With approximately 120K described species, true flies (order Diptera) represent close to 8% of total animal diversity. They are found all over the world and are common in most habitats. The relative diversity and abundance of flies increases sharply with both altitude and latitude, and especially so for the muscoid grade (Muscidae, Anthomyiidae, Scathophagidae, Fanniidae) where many species play key roles in alpine and arctic ecosystems by providing services such as pollination and decomposition. The first axis of this research program aims at studying the taxonomy and phylogenetic relationships of muscoid Diptera. This framework will then facilitate the second axis, which aims at documenting alpine and arctic Diptera diversity patterns and explore the causes shaping them. Knowledge on the dispersal abilities and species-habitat relationships of selected taxa will be generated and their influence on the scale at which flies respond to various elements of arctic and alpine landscapes will be investigated. Special attention will be dedicated to the dynamics of Diptera species assemblages in transitional zones and small patchy habitats such as the alpine/northern timberlines, alpine tundra and alpine meadows.