YODER LAB

Madagascar is the world's greatest natural evolutionary laboratory, and the mission of the Yoder Lab is to understand its evolutionary history and biological complexity, and in so doing (we very much hope), contribute to a global effort to conserve and protect what remains of its unique biota. Madagascar is the world's fourth largest island and is home to approximately 5% of the worlds biodiversity, with 80% of these organisms being unique to this island nation. The inordinately high levels of endemism and biological diversity constitute a compelling reason to study the system with the hope that knowledge gained from this smaller but complex system will have applications across the globe. Madagascar serves as a sort of speciation lab, and a testing ground for conservation methodologies. The island has been designated as one of the most critical geographic priorities for conservation action, retaining less than 10% of the natural habitats that existed before human colonization. It is..

Primary location: Durham United States