About

Brief History

After two years' planning, Research Center for Biodiversity, Academia Sinica (RCBAS) was officially established in January 2004. In line with the "Convention on Biological Diversity," RCBAS was formed with the hope of lowering species extinction, gene disappearance, resource reduction and ecosystem degradation on earth. The Center was formed also to render assistance to and enforce the "Biodiversity Action Plan", ushered by the Executive Yuan of Taiwan. An Advisory Board co-chaired by Drs. Wen-Hsiung Li and Peter H. Raven, was organized, comprising twelve distinguished members. The board held its 1st meeting in March 2004 and 2nd meeting in March 2006. The board was renamed as "Academic Advisory Committee" in May 2005. Dr. Kwang-Tsao Shao, former Director of the Institute of Zoology, has served as the Acting Director since RCBAS was instituted. In the meantime, the Academic Advisory Committee has been assisting Academia Sinica to recruit the first Director for RCBAS.

Research Direction and Projects

The mission of RCBAS is to promote, coordinate, and sponsor basic biodiversity research in Taiwan; to advance domestic and international research collaboration; to integrate biological, biotechnological, ecological, and socio-economical disciplines in pursuit of academic excellence and innovation; and to provide the scientific foundation for the conservation, education, and sustainable use of biodiversity. The "Systematics and Biodiversity Informatics" was designated as a "Thematic Center." The original museum of Institute of Zoology and herbarium of Institute of Botany were transferred to RCBAS in 2005. They shall be consolidated as the Academia Sinica Biodiversity Museum in due course.

Seven foci of research in RCBAS follows:

  • Genetic diversity and evolutionary genomics 
  • Systematic studies on Taiwan Biota
  • Research in the terrestrial and freshwater ecology of Taiwan
  • Studies on Taiwan's marine ecosystem
  • Genetic connectivity and habitat conservation of marine organisms in the Western Pacific
  • Establishment and integration of Taiwan species databases
  • The discovery, monitoring, and restoration of Taiwan's biodiversity

Major Research Accomplishments:

The 18 researchers of RCBAS conducted many biodiversity-related projects and made important contributions. They published papers in noted scientific journals, assisted government in making biodiversity-related policy, and promoted biodiversity education. Researches are classifiable into the following categories: population genetics and molecular evolution; biological systematics; ecological and behavioral studies; preservation and restoration; and integration of biodiversity database and information network in Taiwan.

RCBAS held 18 conferences, both domestic and international, in the years 2004 and 2005. They ranged from basic research to applied fields that contributed to the government policy-making, such as artificial reef, marine protected areas, and invasive species control.

Zoological and Botanical Specimen Archives and Digitization in RCBAS
The Zoological Research Museum has maintained a collection of over 30,000 specimens. Of these, 12,250 are fishes, 2,060 are birds, 2,000 are insects, 600 are corals, 3,000 are crustaceans, 700 are polychaetes, 40 are echinoderms, and 12,000 are mollusks. The Zoological Museum serves also as the specimen deposition and database center of the national cryobanking of wild animals project. The herbarium (HAST) focuses mainly on collections of eastern Asia. Currently we have housed over 110,000 vascular plant specimens, with a growth rate of ca. 6,000 sheets per year. HAST has ca. 70,000 duplicate specimens for exchange with ca. 20 institutions worldwide.