04/06/2026
【CLS-CIAE Grant for Overseas Education】
📌 Institute of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology - Deep Shubhra Biswas
✈ University of Hong Kong 🇭🇰
This research visit follows our long-term collaboration with the Stable Isotope Laboratory at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) as part of my PhD thesis project. In addition, I had the privilege of presenting our previously published research on Taiwan’s rich fossil vertebrate fauna and its unique paleoenvironment through an invited seminar.
My research focuses on the biology and ecology of fossil proboscideans from the Pleistocene of Taiwan, a group of megaherbivores that is abundant in Taiwan’s fossil record but remains comparatively understudied. One major objective of my research has been to incorporate stable isotope analysis to reconstruct the paleoenvironment inhabited by these extinct proboscideans. The first phase of the project produced promising results suggesting the presence of extensive grassland ecosystems during the Late Pleistocene of Taiwan, representing habitats that have no remnants in present-day Taiwan. Building upon these findings, we aimed to further investigate the Middle Pleistocene environment represented by the fossil deposits from Tainan, Taiwan.
The results obtained from this collaboration will provide the first stable isotope-based insights into the Middle Pleistocene ecosystem of Taiwan, which harbored iconic fossil taxa such as extinct rhinoceros, saber-toothed cat, and a giant crocodilian reaching lengths of up to 7 meters.
Beyond the research outcomes, this visit also allowed me to gain valuable experience working within an international collaborative laboratory environment. Standardizing the analytical procedures and discussing research ideas with collaborators broadened my understanding of stable isotope applications in paleoecology and strengthened my perspective on interdisciplinary research. I believe such academic exchanges are extremely important for fostering future collaborations and improving the quality and international visibility of research conducted in Taiwan.
