The goal of the project is to expand the research and innovation potential of InBIO – Research Network in Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, through the creation of an ERA Chair in Environmental Metagenomics. The project aims to strengthen the research potential of human resources, lab facilities and next-generation genome sequencing equipment funded by a FP7 CAPACITIES project, supporting an emerging research line in environmental metagenomics for applications in biodiversity conservation, invasive species control, ecosystem services assessment, and environmental (bio)monitoring. The project will contribute to the regional and national smart specialization strategies, by developing tools and approaches to foster environmentally sustainable development, and strengthening innovation and knowledge transfer activities in close collaboration with local and global industrial partners, as well as with governmental agencies. In addition, the project will contribute to the advanced training of highly-qualified human resources, and to the communication, dissemination and exploitation of InBIO’s research and innovation. To achieve its objectives, EnvMetaGen will develop the following main activities: (i) Upgrade the research capacity and capability by expanding the human potential and fostering a critical mass of researchers with inter-disciplinary expertise in environmental metagenomics; (ii) Improve InBIO’s innovation potential and impact at the regional, national and European levels, by promoting the integration of cost-effective metagenomics approaches at the forefront of biodiversity, ecological and environmental research; and (iii) Raise the international and national network of collaborations and partnerships of InBIO and its industrial and governmental affiliates. These activities will contribute to better integrate InBIO with the European Research Area (ERA), thus increasing their level of participation in the Horizon 2020 program.

Current literature on the evolution of cooperation agrees that kin selection cannot explain the benefits accrued by cooperators in many systems. One main gap is the type of direct benefits that helpers obtain in cooperative breeding systems and how they are ESS provided that natural selection favours defectors over cooperators in unstructured populations. Recent advances show that "social viscosity" can maintain benefits for cooperators. Thus, the study of social-network structure can potentially explain why cooperation persists. This type of approach can only be tackled after a long-term study at individual level. I have monitored a population of cooperative breeding Azure-winged magpie (Cyanopica cooki) for more than 20 years. I have pedigree data, their reproductive behaviour in helper and breeder roles, and lifetime reproductive success for many birds. Yet, the reason why helpers contribute to rearing other birds' offspring has remained elusive. Here I will use network approach to previous data plus new monitoring of breeding groups to study: the role of kinship, by using pedigree and genetic analyses; the structure of social networks based on cooperative relationships, to see whether interactions can explain the maintenance of cooperative behaviour from the point of view of reciprocity and generalized reciprocity predictions; potential paternity sharing between breeders and helpers; and the relative roles of different benefits in lifetime inclusive fitness. I will implement the project within the team of Dr. Rita Covas, who has solid experience in the study of cooperative breeding. I present an innovative but realistic workplan to test original questions with new methodologies that are expected to lead to strong publications. The collaboration proposed means the reinforcement of the contribution of Mediterranean biology into ERA, the re-integration of a woman to scientific activity, and the collaboration between women heading research lines in Europe.

What drives the evolution of female ornamentation? Explaining the evolution of signals found in nature has been a persistent challenge for biologists, but studies have focused mostly on male ornaments, neglecting the question of why and how these traits evolve in females. Oceanic islands around the world provide a “natural laboratory” setting to test evolutionary processes due to their simplified ecosystems, and high levels of endemic species with variation in some specific traits. In particular, island species experience changes in sociality, competition, and predation, all of which are known to influence ornamental traits. I propose to combine comparative analyses, based on museum data, and detailed experimental investigation in the field, using 3-D printed models, to examine how female (and male) ornaments have evolved in island birds worldwide, while accounting for ancestral mainland attributes. Specifically, I will investigate a) the social and ecological factors associated with changes in female and male ornamentation following island colonisation, and b) test experimentally how female and male ornamentation elicit predator and competitor responses on both island and mainland settings. The proposed project will thus have three key outcomes. First, it will determine how the transitions towards increased or decreased ornamentation in both sexes are influenced by changes in social, life-history and environmental factors. This will address the current disparity in our knowledge of elaborate signals in females vs. males and provide a comprehensive understanding of the processes that promote the diversity of sexual phenotypes. Second, the project will advance our understanding of the factors shaping the patterns of phenotypic change in island species. Finally, it will provide the first experimentally test of two central tenets of island ecology, such as lower predation and social competition pressure on islands compared to mainland.