Plenary Talk Title
Chance, Curiosity, and Spiders: Revealing Hidden Diversity in a Tropical Mountain Hotspot
Biography
Suresh Benjamin is a Professor of Biology at the National Institute of Fundamental Studies (NIFS) in Kandy. He received his training at the University of Innsbruck, Austria, and holds a PhD from the University of Basel, Switzerland. He is a leading expert on the taxonomy and biogeography of spiders in South and Southeast Asia.
His research focuses on revising poorly known spider lineages by integrating integrative taxonomy—combining morphological study with molecular phylogenetics. He has been instrumental in documenting Sri Lanka's spider fauna, describing numerous new species and genera while building regional capacity in arachnology.
In this plenary lecture, Prof. Benjamin will explore how a multi-disciplinary approach reveals extensive hidden diversity and evolutionary novelty within the Western Ghats–Sri Lanka hotspot, highlighting the urgent role of taxonomy in global conservation and capacity building.