MUsTARd (Gene flow and riverine barriers in the Guiana shield : a multitaxon test across the Oyapock River) is a project selected in the 2014 CEBA annual call of proposals
LabEx CEBA : What led you to Herpetology ?
Antoine Fouquet : I did a PhD in New Zealand on the diversity and evolutionary history of amphibians from the Guiana Plateau . Then, I had the opportunity to be assistant lecturers (ATER) at the University of Provence in Marseille. In it, I received funding from the Amazonia programme developed by CNRS in French Guiana piloting a project on the genetics of populations of Adenomera andreae (frog species) in the Approuague watershed with the Nouragues reserve (research station managed by the CNRS in French Guiana). After a post-doc in Brazil at the University of São Paulo mainly focused on the biogeography of the genus Adenomera I could integrate the CNRS in French Guiana in 2012.
L.C. : What is your research topic?
A.F. : I study the diversity and evolutionary history of Amazon herpetofauna (amphibians and reptiles).
L.C. : In which scientific issue Mustard project is included?
A.F. : The project aims to test the influence of rivers on the structuring of amphibians, birds and harvestmen populations, a process that could significantly contribute to the diversification in Amazonia. The assumption that rivers contribute to the tremendous diversity in the Amazon is quite old. Up to now, attempts to test this hypothesis are still rare. In addition, the results are quite mixed but they come almost all from central and western Amazonia where rivers have very dynamic way. River characteristics but also those of the studied species can determine if these essential elements of Amazonian landscape constitute a barrier or not.
L.C. : Why French Guiana is an exceptional site for anchoring your project?
A.F. : Streams of the Guiana Shield has the distinction of having a stable hydrology so this is an ideal area to test the hypothesis and the influence of life history traits of the species. The project site will be the Oyapock river, 6 sampling points from upstream to downstream. We thus see that the flow of gene decreases with increasing width of the river, depending on the characteristics of the species. In addition, Guyana is an exceptionally well-preserved region which eliminates the possible influence of plant and disturbance on communities, something increasingly rare.
L.C. : How this project is innovative for research on tropical terrestrial biodiversity?
A.F. : The question is old but this is the way to answer that is innovative here with a mutli-taxa approach and use of next generation sequencing (NGS – also known as high-throughput sequencing: a set of methods to generate millions of sequences for each sample) that have never been used to address the problem before.
L.C. : Is the project involves people of other disciplines than yours?
A.F. : International teams are involved in the project: colleagues from the University of Mississippi will participate in the production of data, an Argentinian researcher Luciano Naka of the Federal University of Pernambuco in Brazil will participate in the sampling and analysis of data. A colleague of the Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle will participate in NGS data processing. EDB team (Evolution and Biodiversity) which is part of CEBA is also represented with Jerome Murienne for harvestmen and Jean-Pierre Vacher part (PhD) for amphibian part.
L.C. : What will be the impact of your project for society?
A.F. : The project will enhance the fundamental understanding of the process of speciation in Amazonia and the role that rivers has and still plays. Indirectly, it could provide evidence to assess the impact of possible hydrological developments; this is an important issue in the region.
L.C. : What are your thoughts on the CEBA added value ?
A.F. : The project could have been financed hardly without the LabEx CEBA, which was also the origin of the approximation of the initiators of the project (Antoine Fouquet, Jerome Murienne, Luciano Naka). CEBA has enabled the project to be launched. The EDB team has also gained expertise in NGS, which is required for the project, collaboration is made naturally in the CEBA. The ramifications of this project will also complement the strategic projects. It also plays a facilitating role in dealings with the Amazon Park Guyana on issues of access to genetic resources and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from their use (APA), part of the samples to be held within the National Park.
