Principal investigator
Dr. Henrique Batalha Filho
Professor at Biology Institute, UFBA.
I am interested in understanding the processes responsible for generating the remarkable diversity of life forms on our planet. Since 2013, my research at LEBI has focused on integrating genetic data (Sanger sequencing and genomics), phenotypic traits, and ecological information from birds and other vertebrates across the Neotropical region to address three main questions: (i) what historical processes have shaped the diversity of species and lineages we observe today? (ii) how do recently diverged species or lineages maintain differentiation despite gene flow in hybrid zones? and (iii) how do species and lineages respond and adapt to past and future climate change?
Post-doc researcher
Ricardo Marques
Project: Genomic approaches to unraveling the systematics and landscape effects on cryptic diversity among populations of the aquatic frog Pipa carvalhoi (Anura: Pipidae)
My research interests focus on understanding how historical landscape processes shape patterns of genetic, phenotypic, and ecological variation among lineages. To address these questions, I integrate approaches from phylogeography, landscape genetics, population genomics, and evolutionary biology. I am also interested in taxonomy, particularly in species delimitation and description, by combining molecular, morphological, acoustic, and ecological evidence.
Marina Bonfim
Project: What would constitute environmental barriers for organisms with extensive geographic ranges and the capacity to disperse over long distances?
My research interest is in better understanding the effects of long-distance dispersal on species variability and diversification. Using pantropically distributed bryophyte species as a model system, I employ landscape genomics approaches to estimate the relative contribution of different dispersal scales and infer potential landscape barriers that may explain the observed patterns.
PhD students
Maisa Alves
Project: Effect of altitude on genomic adaptation and hemoparasite diversity in birds of Chapada Diamantina
My research interests focus on understanding how altitudinal gradients shape the structure and dynamics of bird communities by integrating approaches from community ecology, evolutionary ecology, population genomics, and host–parasite interactions.
Nathália Marques
Project: Speciation genomics and hybrid zones between Thamnophilus ambiguus and T. pelzelni
I have experience in bioacoustics and species distribution modeling, with research interests in biogeography, genetics, ornithology, and bioacoustics. I am currently investigating the evolutionary history and evolutionary processes of Thamnophilus pelzelni and Thamnophilus ambiguus using genomic data.
Isabelle Luz
Project: Integrating evolutionary genomics and machine learning to understand speciation in Neotropical birds
I am a PhD student interested in understanding the processes that generate and maintain biodiversity. My research uses integrative approaches, combining genomic, morphological, and acoustic data to understand the evolutionary history of Neotropical birds and the processes involved in their diversification.
Josival Araújo (Co-advised)
Project: Historical Biogeography, Phylogeography, and Spatiotemporal Dynamics of Neotropical Dung Beetles (Scarabaeoidea: Scarabaeinae)
My research interests focus on investigating the evolutionary relationships, historical distribution, and processes shaping the diversification of dung beetles across the Neotropical region. In this project, we integrate multiple approaches, including species distribution modeling, historical biogeography, and phylogeographic analyses, to understand the patterns and processes underlying the diversification of model dung beetle groups.
Master students
Carina Costa
Project: Species limits and population history of Cantorchilus longirostris (Aves: Troglodytidae)
I am interested in understanding the biogeographic patterns and evolutionary history of Neotropical birds, using approaches in population genetics and genomics, landscape genetics, phylogeography, and ecological niche modeling.
Pablo Gulhões
Project: Acoustic variation and species delimitation in the Thamnomanes caesius and Thamnomanes schistogynus complex (Passeriformes, Thamnophilidae).
I am interested in species delimitation and in investigating the factors underlying acoustic variation and diversification in the Neotropical avifauna. I currently use acoustic data in combination with genotypic data for species delimitation, as well as bioclimatic variables, to understand the role of environmental variables and biogeographic barriers in shaping variation in acoustic signals.
Undergraduate students
Alice Cerqueira
Project: Morphometric and plumage geographic variation in Thamnophilus pelzelni and T. ambiguus (Aves: Thamnophilidae)
My research interests focus on integrating morphological, molecular, and ecological data to investigate species boundaries, population structure, biogeographic history, and the processes driving diversification in Neotropical birds.
Giovanna Teles
Project: Bird Collection of the Museum of History of Bahia: taxidermy and its geographic and taxonomic representativeness
Açucena Pela
Assistant Curator of the Bird Scientific Collection at the Natural History Museum of Bahia