Project: Do Type Localities Hold a Biogeographical Signal in Marine Snapping Shrimps (Alpheidae)?

28 July – 5 September (six weeks), supervised by Sammy De Grave

Project summary

Species descriptions routinely list type localities, i.e. the geographical location from which the 'type specimen' is collected. It is however not known if these contain a real biogeographical signal or are merely a vagary of collecting effort, perhaps linked to travel patterns or individual taxonomists. This project will look at this conundrum by mapping the type localities of all snapping shrimps and contrasting (and mapping) these to the full distribution of these species.

Project details

In order to accomplish this, the student will:

Map the type localities of snapping shrimps (c. 900 species) on the online platform DecaNet
Expand the distribution records, where possible, with full distributional data, using the MEOWS classification scheme
Compare and contrast the two data sets

Selection criteria

Essential

Enthusiasm for nature
Excellent IT skills
Ability to perform repetitive tasks
Ability to work independently and as part of a team

Desirable

Interest in marine invertebrates
Interest in biodiversity informatics

Outcomes for students

Gain familiarity with biodiversity informatics
Training in foundational taxonomic principles
Gain valuable and relevant experience for a future career in biodiversity research

Reasonable adjustments

The museum is committed to making reasonable adjustments to its summer placements to make sure that students with disabilities or health conditions are not substantially disadvantaged. If you are concerned about meeting the selection criteria for a project of interest, or completing relevant tasks, please get in touch with Hannah Betts before submitting your application to discuss possible adjustments to the project: summerplacements@oum.ox.ac.uk.