Dr. Tao Liang’s research focuses on reptile macroecology. Tao received his PhD from the College of Forestry at the Nanjing Forestry University in China, under the supervision of Prof. Chang-hu Lu. His postdoctoral research is taking place at the School of Zoology of Tel Aviv University hosted by prof. Shai Meiri.

 

To date, Dr. Liang’s studies focused on reptile macroecology in China. He studied the spatial patterns of the Chinese lizard’s richness, body size, phylogenetic diversity, and conservation on country-wide and regional scales; as well as the potential environmental, historical, and evolutionary drivers of the patterns he identified. He also studied the size of sexual dimorphism of lizards globally and their evolutionary underpinnings. Dr. Liang currently maintains the online ecological database of Chinese reptiles, through which he aims to comprise a comprehensive collection of life-history traits for future studies and for conservation purposes. More details about his work can be found at https://taoliang.weebly.com/.

 

In his postdoctoral research at Tel Aviv University, Dr. Liang is studying the impacts of climate change on global reptile and land vertebrate diversity. He is evaluating the ecological and evolutionary mechanisms that drive threat patterns, quantify range and species loss, and inform the placement of protected areas. Dr. Liang is comparing reptiles with other tetrapods to understand whether they exhibit different responses and potential reasons for doing so.