Vertebrata Department

Blind snakes represent the extant basalmost snakes of the evolutionary radiation of modern snakes and include fully fossorial species with bizarre skeletal traits. Despite their relevant phylogenetic position in the snake tree, little is known about their ontogeny and what it might reveal about the origin of their skull anatomy. In the context of recently proposed phylogenetic relationships two hypotheses were raised about the evolution of worm snakes. On one hand, some authors proposed that they represent very old phenotypes inherited from the last common ancestor of extant snakes. On the other hand, other authors argued on the basis of morphological information that each worm snake group represents an independent specialization for fossorial habits, as a result of miniaturization, deviating considerably from evolutionary trends of snakes. The aim of this project is to conduct a comprehensive characterization and specific analyses on skull morphology of blind snakes, incorporating ontogenetic data of blind snakes and alethinophidians. Additionally, the first description of the embryonic development of the skull of a worm snake (Epictia australis) will be addressed. Thus, this project will contribute with novel data on the ontogenetic skull changes in different clades of snakes using 3D reconstructions based on micro-CT data. In addition, a morphological and morphometric approach of the development of the skull of blind snakes will allow us to test hypotheses of homology of cranial elements in snakes, to propose developmental patterns for this group, as well as to reveal similarities or differences with respect to the development of alethinophidian snakes and to depict their evolutionary significance. On a broader scale, this project aims to describe the general patterns of skull diversity of snakes, and to elucidate if the blind snakes correspond to derived forms or are a highly plesiomorphic group.

Blind snakes are the most basal group of extant snakes and one of the least known in terms of morphology, biogeography and ecology. They are small snakes of fossorial habits that exhibit tubular bodies, smooth scales and a remarkable reduction of eyes and head escalation. The morphology of their skull is highly modified with respect to the rest of the snakes and is conditioned both by a particular system of feeding mechanism, as well as by the mechanical demands imposed by the fossorial habits. The aim of this project is to provide new information about the evolution of the snake skull through the analysis of the complete ontogenetic sequence of the skull of Amerotyphlops brongersmianus, which is a relatively large (SVL = 300 mm on average), oviparous, blind snake species belonging to the family Typhlopidae. The study was carried out entirely on the basis of 3D reconstructions based on micro-CT data, which allowed the accurate representation of anatomical structures with their natural shapes, orientations and spatial relations in minute size embryos.

The animals exhibited in the Museum Koenig are mostly representative of their respective species. However, some exhibits have an exciting story to tell, for example because they come from a famous collector or only came to the Museum Koenig in Bonn via detours. The aim of the project is to find out the special stories of individual specimens in the museum's exhibitions and to write them down in order to make them accessible to a broader public, for example in the form of popular science publications or as part of museum educational programs.

Bite forces have been associated with head size and shape in most lizards. However, they also depend on underlying functional factors such as territoriality, mating, or defensive behaviors.In the project funded by the Margarethe Koenig award, rock lizards of the genus Darevskia will be studied concerning these underlying factors.

Bothropoids are a highly diverse group of pitvipers whose phylogeny is not yet sufficiently clear given the uncertain, unclear or conflicting position of many species. Our goal is to assess the contribution of new data and an increased taxon sampling for the outgroup on clarifying the phylogeny of bothropoids. New data includes new morphological and molecular characters, additional data of poorly known species, data of species described recently, and data of putative new species.

The uplift of the Himalaya-Tibet Orogen (HTO) has significantly influenced the global climate and due to its massive elevations and river incisions it likely acts as a ‘species pump’. However, our understanding of the historical biogeography of species in the HTO is far from being comprehensive, as are details of the spatiotemporal evolution of its uplift. The Himalaya plays a key role in elucidating these processes.

The objective of this work is to provide a commented list on the herpetofauna of Estação Ecológica Estadual Wenceslau Guimarães, municipality of Wenceslau Guimarães, southern Bahia, Brazil. This Conservation Unit is located in the Central Corridor of the Atlantic Forest and has an area of 2,418 hectares.

Establishing an extensive ecological profile of a population is of outmost importance in conservation efforts and landscape management. The sand lizard (Lacerta agilis LINNAEUS, 1758) is a widely spread Eurasian species that prefers open to half-open habitats. This includes areas in close proximity to humans like road and railroad edges or quarries. Therefore, the species is often victim of disturbances, destruction or fragmentation of its habitat and therefore subject to a lot of compensative measures.

Project start: 2012 This project deals with the precise and comparative descriptions of tadpoles of different species with the help of developmental biology comparisons as well as micro-CT scans. Project lead: Dr. Dennis Rödder

Duikers (Bovidae, Artiodactyla) are notoriously hard to classify, and several competing species definitions have been proposed. Using 3D geometric morphometrics we aim at investigating the morhological diversity of duiker skulls, evaluating the competing species definitions from a morphometric perspective.

In collaboration with the German NABU the ZFMK has been an active partner to initiate a large joint project to understand drivers of insect decline, the DINA project (2019-2022). The goal of the project is to assess and monitor the insect fauna in 21 selected Nature-protected areas using a Malaise trap transect approach. A particular goal of this project is to demonstrate the power of metabarcoding for the rapid and efficient assessment of the insect fauna relying on the GBOL database. Additionally to the insect fauna, landscape parameters including anthropogenic influence will be recorded.

One female Caucasian Tur (Capra caucasica) was equipped with a collar that detected head movement using acceleration sensors in 3D. The animal was observed for up to two hours per day for several months and the noted behaviour was correlated with the sensor data in order to train an algorithm for automated behaviour detection. The analyses were done in R with the Random Forrest algorithm. The results show that over 20 different classes of behaviour (including head postures, rumination, different locomotion types) can be identified with very high accuracy (>95%).

This study aims to understand morphological variation and its potential influence on the distribution of 26 species of Neotropical parrots along an elevation gradient in the Manú National Park in southern Peru.

Monitor lizards are the largest living lizards. Although morphologically uniform, monitor lizards show remarkable differences in body size ranging from a mere 20 cm to more than three meters in total length. In addition, they show a wide range of ecological adaptations being terrestrial, arboreal or semi-aquatic. They inhabit Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, South and Southeast Asia as well as the Indo-Australian Archipelago including Australia and several remote Pacific island groups. Today, about 80 different species of monitor lizards are recognised but their diversity is still not completely known with new species being discovered in a regular manner. These remarkable giant reptiles, though of enormous economic importance in the international trade with reptile leather products and pets, as well as for spiritual relationships between human being and nature and as source of protein for the native people in their countries of origin, are an impressive example of our limited knowledge about the global biodiversity. Therefore, it is the intention of this project to remedy this severe deficiency at least partly.

The focus of this project is to evaluate exemplary for the freshwater fauna of the river Sieg (Germany) the efficiency of different single specimen DNA-barcoding approaches for routine stream monitoring tasks.The taxonomic resolution of morphological and DNA barcode-based species identification is directly compared, investigating additional value and congruence of both methods. In cases where standard COI barcodes failed to offer unambiguous species identifications, the discrimination capacity of the nuclear rhodopsin marker (RHO) is tested.

Pollination is crucial for maintaining angiosperm biodiversity and represents one of the most important ecosystem services. With the increasing threats of massive insect decline, studying pollination and associated networks has become more important than ever. In this study, we target the plant-pollinator networks of two important crops (caraway and apple) using a combination of traditional methods with DNA barcoding and metabarcoding.

This project deals with complete and comparative tadpole descriptions of different species of the poison dart frog genus Ranitomeya with micro-CT-scans

This project is based on breeding and data collection of the larval development of tropical amphibians. We are especially working with neotropical poison frogs (Dendrobatidae, especial Epipedobates and Ranitomeya).

In this project, we investigate different nutcracker subspecies by comparing diet and other ecological traits using classical morphometric measurements and digital three-dimensional methods.

This study looks at using mitochondrial genes to construct a first comprehensive phylogenetic tree for the oystercatchers (Haematopodidae), a monotypic family of waders with worldwide distribution.

Upgrade of an International subprogram (Indopacific Coral Reef Biodiversity and Conservation, IPCRBC) within the local Master program Aquatic Science at Sam Ratulangi University, Manado in order to prepare it for a Double Degree Master program with University of Bonn and Bremen and thus strengthening existing cooperation between teaching partners UNSRAT, ZFMK and ZMT with regard to future collaborations

The aim of this study is to examine the relationships within and between Treepies and Oriental Magpies based on morphological, molecular, and biogeographical data.

Rictal bristles apparently evolved convergently in many different bird families without necessarily having the same function. The aim of this comparative project is to interpret the occurrence of rictal bristles among different bird families with respect to their phylogeny and ecology.

Herpetological project

Erfassung der Fischfauna des Mesangat Feuchtgebietes, Kalimantan Timur, Indonesien

Within a joint project of ZFMK, Colonge Zoo and several Vietnamese partneres we are investigating the Herpetofauna of Vietnam and establish several projects for nature conservation.

Within this project the lizard fauna of Iran is investigated in terms of Systematics and Evolutionary Biology.

Analysing the impact of different landuse on mammals, birds and reptiles in the arid Otjimbinge Area of Namibia.

Landsnails of the genus Theba show an endemic radiation on the Canary Islands and the adjacent West African Continent.

Study of species diversity of shrews in tropical rainforests.

Small Mammal Monitoring for an Iron Ore Mining project in the Putu Mountains of Liberia.

In this pilot project we examine bird eggs of the Museum Koenig’s extensive egg collection using a white light scanner, focusing on a large set of clutches of Common Terns (Sterna hirundo) and Gull-billed Terns (Gelochelidon nilotica).

Macrovipera lebetina

In this project, we study selected Ethiopian bird species that are little-known in terms of distribution, lifestyle and threats.

Expedition to the tropical lowland rainforest to collect material (insects, tree trunks, lianas, interviews) for the new rainforest exhibition.

Assessing the Green Toad in Cologne according to FFH standards