A new reference genome for the conservation of coastal species in the face of anthropogenic change.

Enhancing Biodiversity Genomics Applications program. 

 

This project is part of a consolidated line of research that aims to advance knowledge of the genomic basis of adaptation and the generation of diversity. The line focuses on the radiation of animal species on oceanic islands and is based on the case study of the rapid diversification of the spider genus Dysdera on the Canary Islands. The main aim of our research is to disentangle the genomic signals of adaptive and non-adaptive evolution in the origin and maintenance of endemic biodiversity. Previous results of this line include the identification of molecular targets of adaptive convergence in phenotypic traits related to trophic specialization in the western Canary Islands, or the characterization of the mechanisms underlying the intriguing genome size reduction observed in insular species. 

 

To improve our knowledge of the genomic determinants of this remarkable radiation and to understand the genomic consequences of island colonization, the current project is generating new reference genomes at the chromosome level for species from both the Canary Islands (D. mahan, D. curviseta and D. nesiotes) and the mainland (D. lata). Interestingly, D. mahan and D. curviseta inhabit the intertidal zones of pebble beaches on the sea-shores. This habitat is unique among the species of the genus, and it represents a case of ecological shift reported in the genus Dysdera. This provides a great opportunity to investigate habitat specialization as a novel driver of species radiation in our studies, but more importantly to envisage how these highly specialized organisms adapt to habitats that are particularly vulnerable to anthropogenic effects. It is far known that the coastal habitat of the Canary Islands is one of the most degraded habitats during the last thirty years, mainly due to urban development, and this trend is still increasing. The results of this project will be crucial for predicting how factors such as coastal degradation, sea level rise, desalination and other human-induced impacts will affect these organisms and the adaptive potential they have to respond to them.

 

Period: 2024-2025.

Funding: European Reference Genome Atlas – Biodiversity Genomic Europe (ERGA-BGE). 

PI: Julio Rozas, Sara Guirao-Rico & Nuria Macías.

Participating entities: Universitat de Barcelona & University of La Laguna.