[en] Various evolutionary processes greatly influenced by the geological and climatic history shaped the
diversity of the current Antarctic marine fauna. In the past, these Antarctic species have survived different
glacial cycles through dispersal to refugia, and/or adaptations to novel abiotic and biotic conditions. With the
increasing temperatures in the polar regions, marine fauna is currently faced with three possible outcomes:
adaptation, migration or extinction. Based on how these organisms were able to survive environmental changes
in the past will allow us to predict their future response. In this study, amphipods of the genus Eusirus are as
model organisms as knowledge on their ecology and biogeography is still very limited. The evolutionary
history of Eusirus amphipods is phylogenetically reconstructed through time with molecular data. DNA
sequence data are obtained by sequencing the complete mitochondrial genomes, using a combination of
skimming sequencing and long-range PCRs amplicons of different Eusirus species. Mitochondrial data will be
complemented with additional sequence data from nuclear genes. Time-calibrated phylogenies will be used as
basis for plotting ecological and trophic data generated by stable isotope analyses as well as morphological
information. By combining data from time-calibrated phylogenies as well as from ecology and morphology,
we aim to understand the evolutionary processes that led to the current diversity of Eusirus amphipods.