Photograph: Wikimedia Commons user “Polygonia c-album”. Cropped and resized. · Source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Butterflies and moths live in nearly every terrestrial ecosystem and are especially diverse in the Neotropics. They are an ideal group for studying ecology, evolution and conservation.
But most species in the region still lack reference genomes and genetic markers. Caligo brings researchers and resources together across Latin America to identify species, discover new ones and study how they arise.
Read about CaligoProduce DNA barcodes, population data and reference assemblies for taxonomic groups that remain poorly represented.
Each sequence or assembly points to a documented specimen in a collection, so researchers can check which organism was sequenced and where it came from.
Expand sequencing, sample banking and bioinformatics in Latin America, from country capitals to remote field sites in areas of high biodiversity.
Support training, open data and shared publications while recognising everyone who contributes specimens, analysis or knowledge.
Eight researchers from institutions in Latin America and Europe coordinate the community.
Butterfly ecology and environmental response
At Ikiam’s Scientific Insectary, Caroline studies the genetics, molecular evolution and behaviour of Amazonian Lepidoptera, including their responses to environmental change.
Universidad Regional Amazónica Ikiam
Regional ties: Ecuador
Butterfly ecology and biodiversity monitoring
Gyanpriya studies the diversity, genetics, physiology, ecology and behaviour of Neotropical butterflies, alongside broader work in entomology and insect monitoring.
University of Guyana
Regional ties: Guyana
Conservation and population genetics
Carmen combines molecular ecology and conservation genetics to study Neotropical species, population history and biodiversity conservation.
Universidade Federal de Goiás
Regional ties: BrazilColombia
Evolutionary genomics and speciation
Carlos studies how species form and what limits their divergence, using computational methods and Heliconius butterflies.
Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
Regional ties: Panama
Chromosome evolution
Nicol studies chromosome structure and sex chromosome-autosome fusions in Heliconius, using reference genomes to investigate Lepidoptera evolution.
Wellcome Sanger Institute
Regional ties: ColombiaUnited Kingdom
Speciation and comparative genomics
Joana works on speciation and evolutionary genomics, studying how interbreeding and chromosomal rearrangements contribute to rapid adaptation and the formation of new species.
Wellcome Sanger Institute
Regional ties: EcuadorPeruUnited Kingdom
Tropical adaptation and genome resources
Vicencio combines development, genomics, evolutionary biology and ecology to study how tropical butterflies adapt to environmental change.
Queen Mary University of London
Regional ties: ColombiaUnited Kingdom
Amazonian entomology and conservation
Geoff studies the taxonomy, systematics, ecology and conservation of Amazonian insects. He also teaches and supervises research on sustainable biodiversity management in Peru.
Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú / Alianza para una Amazonía Sostenible
Regional ties: PeruUnited States
Eight partner facilities in six countries can sequence Caligo samples close to where they are collected.
Workshops, hackathons and other events help us learn together and grow the network.
Bogotá, Colombia
The network’s first activity in Latin America, with the Red Colombiana de Genómica. Eight Heliconius species were sequenced during the workshop.
The Heliconius pilot projectColombia
Our first call supported local pilot projects to sequence Lepidoptera species from Colombia.
Funding opportunitiesEcuador
This call funds local research teams to sequence Lepidoptera species native to Ecuador.
This call funded local research teams to sequence Lepidoptera species native to Ecuador.
Funding opportunitiesCampinas, Brazil
Hackathon at the Biology of Butterflies and ELEN (Neotropical Lepidoptera meeting) congress: participants assemble reference genomes and analyse the data together.
Congress websiteYou can contribute specimens, sequencing capacity, taxonomic knowledge or a research question. Register with the network, join the conversation on Discord or contact us by email.
