Zoology: Basic Research Plan

Biodiversity Analysis Based on Animal Inventories

Objective

We will collect specimens and materials from all types of animal groups and conduct research on their taxonomy, biogeography, and ecology to build an animal inventory and advance our understanding of species diversity. Using morphological and molecular information obtained from these specimens, we will also conduct research on animal phylogeny and genetic diversity.

Background

  1. The mission of the Kahaku rests on three pillars: (1) Research, (2) Collection, and (3) Exhibitions and Education. While our research is primarily advanced through integrated and focused research projects, our basic research is centered on collection building. The findings from the resulting natural history research must then be made available to both the academic community and the general public.
  2. The degree to which animal species diversity is understood varies dramatically among taxonomic groups. For groups such as insects and marine invertebrates, species-level taxonomic research is the foremost priority. In contrast, for mammals and birds, where species-level taxonomy is well-advanced, research must focus on areas such as evolution and speciation, as well as on studies that contribute to the conservation of species or populations.
  3. The integrated research project from the previous medium-term plan, "Building an Inventory of Natural History in the Asia-Oceania Region," yielded significant findings in animal inventory research through surveys of the Asian region, including the Japanese archipelago, and the seas surrounding Japan, including the deep sea. Additionally, the focused research project "Research on Marine Mammals Utilizing Stranded Specimens" has provided foundational materials that contribute to our understanding of cetacean ecology and the conservation of local populations. These findings must be effectively incorporated into the basic research of the current medium-term period.
  4. The current state of our animal-related collection reveals significant disparities among taxonomic groups in both the completeness of taxa and the number of specimens per species. Collection building is well-advanced for taxonomic groups that have (or have had) dedicated experts. In contrast, collections for other groups are generally lacking (see attached materials). In addition, for some groups such as large mammals and certain birds, new specimens have become nearly unobtainable due to conservation policies.

Research Plan

Common Policies

  1. Conduct surveys on mammals, birds, fishes, echinoderms, mollusks, crustaceans, insects, arachnids, parasites, and other groups, while also promoting taxonomic studies based on collected specimens to enhance the animal inventory, and deepening our understanding of species diversity in combination with research findings on biogeography and ecology.
  2. Conduct research related to the phylogeny and evolution of animals using methods such as comparative morphology and molecular analyses, while also aiming to elucidate their genetic diversity through data obtained from molecular analyses.

Plan Overview for Individual Taxonomic Groups (Five-Year Medium-Term Plan)

Vertebrates Mammals and Birds With the aim of understanding the diversity of vertebrates, conduct research focusing on morphology and genetic diversity and strive to preserve these research resources.
Fishes Conduct surveys in Asia, including Japan, to enhance our fish inventory and promote taxonomic research on this group. In addition, collaborate with visiting researchers to describe new species native to Japan.
Marine Invertebrates Conduct surveys in the waters surrounding Japan and adjacent seas to enhance our collection of marine invertebrate specimens. Based on these specimens, carry out research in areas such as taxonomy, molecular phylogenetics, zoogeography, and ecology to elucidate marine biodiversity.
Terrestrial Invertebrates Focusing on Japan and neighboring countries in the Asia-Pacific region, conduct surveys of insects and arachnids and promote taxonomic and biogeographical research based on the collected specimens to refine our inventories. In addition, advance our research on phylogeny, evolution, and diversity by combining comparative morphology, molecular data analysis, and ecological insights.

Department of Zoology: Collection Policy

  1. Collect animals from around the world, with a particular focus on Japan and its surrounding regions.
  2. Actively accept collections from external sources.
  3. Actively collect specimens from poorly represented taxonomic groups as well as from localities not yet represented in our collection.

Explore our animal collection in more detail here.(3.2 MB)