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Presented by: Dr. Jorge Crisci, Museo de La Plata, Argentina
at University of Nebraska, Lincoln
May 13-17, 2002
Mary Liz Jameson
"The definition of biogeography may be simple–the
study of the geographical distributions of organisms–but this simplicity
hides the great complexity of the subject. Biogeography transcends classical
subject areas, it involves a range of scientific disciplines that includes
geography, geology and biology. No one who studies biogeography can fail
to be impressed, or perplexed, by the diversity of approaches to the
subject."
–J.V. Crisci. 2001. The voice of
historical biogeography. Journal of Biogeography 28:157-168.
.
As Dr.
Jorge Crisci so aptly stated in his 2001 keynote paper in
the Journal of Biogeography, the study of biogeography is in
the midst of an extraordinary revolution. In part, this revolution
is due to breakthroughs in computer technology that allow us
to interpret distributional data. In part, it is also due to
our growing understanding of organisms (extant and extinct),
geology, cladistics, and molecular systematics. Yet in the midst
of the revolution is a confounding problem. In order to advance
the science of biogeography, Crisci tells us that we must unite
to build a common language and common methods that encompass
all aspects of comparative biology from molecular systematics
and parasitology to plate tectonics and biogeography. We need
these tools in order to advance biogeography, to break the mold,
and to create a paradigm shift in the science of biogeography.
The workshop on "Biogeographic Theory and Analysis" was presented by Dr. Jorge Crisci (Museo de La Plata, Argentina) and Federico Ocampo (University of Nebraska) from 13-17 May 2002 at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Crisci and Ocampo invested an enormous amount of time, energy, and knowledge into creating a marvelous workshop on historical biogeography, theory, and methods. Crisci synthesized biogeographic theory, placed the science of biogeography in a historical context, and stressed the importance of uniting macroevolution and microevolution in biogeography and systematics. Crisci will be remembered for his outstanding teaching skills, command of a difficult topic, passion and enthusiasm for biogeography, and the magic that he seemed to sprinkle in the classroom. Crisci and Ocampo discussed the importance of studying biogeography in evolution and conservation, pitfalls of current methods, and fundamentals of the discipline. The workshop produced novel ideas in biogeographic theory and methods. It is Crisci's hope that the workshop helped to plant the seed of knowledge that will propel the science of biogeography to a higher level of understanding. ......
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Federico Ocampo and Dr. Jorge Crisci led the workshop on "Biogeographic Theory and Analysis" at the University of Nebraska. (Click here to see Crisci's plaque with signatures of all participants.) |
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During the course of the workshop, participants learned: 1) The principles, impact, and history of historical biogeography
and its contribution to comparative biology Lectures included the following topics (down-loadable video segments will be available soon): 1) Historical biogeography: definition, concepts, spatial analysis,
taxonomy of methods Ocampo lead participants in the hands-on laboratory during the workshop. The laboratory exercises included computer-aided analyses, analyses by hand, and discussions of the following methods: 1) Parsimony Analysis of Endemicity (PAE) based on quadrats |
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