Research

Our research activities focus on the herpetofauna of the Neotropics (Central and South America, Mexico, and the West Indies) and Southeast Asia.

The basis of our research is a species inventory of the given region with a taxonomic treatment of its faunal elements. Then, based on  morphological, bioacoustic, ecological, zoogeographic, and molecular genetic data, we evaluate the phylogenetic relationships of the species in question and establish hypotheses for the evolution of the studied taxa. Statistical analyses of the zoogeography of the species assemblages are also part of our work. Inventories and mapping of species at our study sites led to the discovery and identification of numerous new species (see table below). Furthermore, we generate a wealth of new ecological data during our field research and increase the current knowledge on the
biology of many species.

Since 1995, the genus Anolis is the animal group we have studied most intensively. More than one third of the 96 species of Anolis currently known to occur in Central America have been described or resurrected by us. With close to 400 recognized species, the genus Anolis provides great opportunities to study various aspects of speciation.