Dark Taxa: biodiversity of unknown arthropods on Pacific Islands using DNA
George Roderick, Professor
Environmental Science, Policy and Management
Applications for Fall 2025 are closed for this project.
Biodiversity surveys often accumulate many many insect and spider specimens, but it is usually hard to figure out what the species actually are. Many species are not yet described and many are found in an area for the first time, or the species are not yet in DNA databases. In this project we are trying to figure out what the species in biodiversity surveys from Pacific Islands are, especially spiders, leaf-feeding arthropods and soil arthropods. Some are newly discovered native species, some are unknown new invasive species. This is part of a large project to understand the origins of biodiversity in the islands of the Pacific, including French Polynesia, Hawaii, the Marianas, and Okinawa, Japan. We are especially interested in the roles of native and invasive species in the biological communities of these islands.
Role: Students will be working with specimens of arthropods (insects, spiders, millipedes, etc) to sort and prepare specimens for DNA extractions. Specific tasks may include specimen identification, measuring specimens, recording functional characteristics, using sterile lab techniques, and using micropipettes for basic laboratory tasks, such as DNA amplication. The work can either be using actual specimens or lab approaches, or both.
Qualifications: Interest in learning about arthropod identification or previous class experience (e.g. insect or spider biology). Desirable but not essential: prior experience with micropipettes, DNA extraction, gel electrophoresis, PCR.
Day-to-day supervisor for this project: Sven Weber, Pritam Banerjee, Post-Doc
Hours: to be negotiated
Off-Campus Research Site: On Campus, Wellman and Hilgard Halls
Related website: https://nature.berkeley.edu/edias-project/
Related website: https://vcresearch.berkeley.edu/faculty/george-roderick