Large Scale Integrative Taxonomy
Paula Riccardi from the Bavarian State Collection of Zoology will introduce a framework for contextualising large volumes of imaging and DNA barcoding data into taxonomic revisions and species descriptions.
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Description
* Exact dates in Nov/Dec TBC
Due to uneven surveying and high levels of undescribed diversity, we do not have a thorough and accurate account of species distributions across ecological communities in Australia. This stymies efforts to account for biodiversity in conservation and land use decision making. Insects are the most diverse macroscopic terrestrial organisms, and malaise trapping is an effective method for collecting insects in high numbers. Via high throughput ONT barcoding, cost-effective imaging, automated specimen processing, and AI/ML assisted image recognition, initiatives like the Diversity Scanner at ANU can begin to bridge gaps in unknown biodiversity across landscapes. These efforts primarily deal in mOTUs based on fragments of the COI barcoding gene. Integrating this data into actionable species concepts would greatly enhance the utility and reproducibility of ecological monitoring for insects. In line with this, specimen curation from the Diversity Scanner can be streamlined for downstream applications including morphometrics, phylogenomics, and biodiscovery.
One new approach to incorporate mOTUs from Diversity Scanner-style projects into the Linnaean hierarchy is the Large-Scale Integrative Taxonomy workflow (LIT). In brief, this approach iteratively down-samples the outputs from ecological surveys and streamlines character scoring, figure preparation, and species diagnoses. It is a framework for contextualising large volumes of imaging and DNA barcoding data into taxonomic revisions and species descriptions. These descriptions are then machine readable to populate trait databases and automated identification approaches.
This workshop will demonstrate how to transform NGS barcoding data into meaningful biological information. It aims to teach participants innovative, optimized workflows for validating molecular taxonomic units, with a focus on hyperdiverse insects. The goal is to accelerate robust species delimitation and description. It will be open to any student, postdoc, and EMCR in Australia. Some lecture activities could be made available remotely and recorded via video, but the workshop will include a laboratory demonstration component. Participants can bring their own preliminary data, and additional data and specimens for practical exercises will be made available.
Riccardi PR, Hartop E. (2024). Large-scale integrative taxonomy of Swedish grass flies (Diptera, Chloropidae) reveals hitherto unknown complexity of a dark taxon. Zoologica Scripta: 53(5):614-31. https://doi.org/10.1111/zsc.12663
Workshop outline |
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Day 1 (4 hours, optional) — co-taught by Paula Riccardi, Keith Bayless, and Megan Head
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Day 2 (4 hours) — Paula Riccardi
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Day 3 (4 hours) — Paula Riccardi
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Day 4 (4 hours, optional) — Paula Riccardi, Keith Bayless, and Megan Head
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About the Presenter
Dr Riccardi is the curator of Diptera at the Bavarian State Collection of Zoology. She is an evolutionary biologist who researches the taxonomy and systematics of hyperdiverse and understudied Diptera, particularly acalyptrate flies. These flies are among the most abundant and diverse insects in malaise traps. Many ‘dark taxa’ studies concern this group of insects. She is at the forefront of developing new methods in biodiversity analyses. Her research combines large-scale integrative taxonomy, genomics, and biogeography to uncover evolutionary drivers that influence the diversity dynamics of fly lineages. She also implements automated workflows to enable scalable species discovery relevant for biodiversity monitoring and conservation.
Dr Riccardi's visit is funded by the Centre for Biodiversity Analysis, hosted by Keith Bayless (CSIRO- ANIC) and Megan Head (ANU). Please get in touch if you would like to meet with Paula during her time in Canberra (Nov/Dec 2026).
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