Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Animal Science and Zoology, Ecological Modeling, Multidisciplinary
8
Scopus Publications
176
Scholar Citations
5
Scholar h-index
4
Scholar i10-index
Scopus Publications
Same data, different analysts: variation in effect sizes due to analytical decisions in ecology and evolutionary biology Elliot Gould, Hannah S. Fraser, Timothy H. Parker, Shinichi Nakagawa, Simon C. Griffith, Peter A. Vesk, Fiona Fidler, Daniel G. Hamilton, Robin N. Abbey-Lee, Jessica K. Abbott, Luis A. Aguirre, Carles Alcaraz, Irith Aloni, Drew Altschul, Kunal Arekar, Jeff W. Atkins, Joe Atkinson, Christopher M. Baker, Meghan Barrett, Kristian Bell, Suleiman Kehinde Bello, Iván Beltrán, Bernd J. Berauer, Michael Grant Bertram, Peter D. Billman, Charlie K. Blake, Shannon Blake, Louis Bliard, Andrea Bonisoli-Alquati, Timothée Bonnet, Camille Nina Marion Bordes, Aneesh P. H. Bose, Thomas Botterill-James, Melissa Anna Boyd, Sarah A. Boyle, Tom Bradfer-Lawrence, Jennifer Bradham, Jack A. Brand, Martin I. Brengdahl, Martin Bulla, Luc Bussière, Ettore Camerlenghi, Sara E. Campbell, Leonardo L. F. Campos, Anthony Caravaggi, Pedro Cardoso, Charles J. W. Carroll, Therese A. Catanach, Xuan Chen, Heung Ying Janet Chik, Emily Sarah Choy, Alec Philip Christie, Angela Chuang, Amanda J. Chunco, Bethany L. Clark, Andrea Contina, Garth A. Covernton, Murray P. Cox, Kimberly A. Cressman, Marco Crotti, Connor Davidson Crouch, Pietro B. D’Amelio, Alexandra Allison de Sousa, Timm Fabian Döbert, Ralph Dobler, Adam J. Dobson, Tim S. Doherty, Szymon Marian Drobniak, Alexandra Grace Duffy, Alison B. Duncan, Robert P. Dunn, Jamie Dunning, Trishna Dutta, Luke Eberhart-Hertel, Jared Alan Elmore, Mahmoud Medhat Elsherif, Holly M. English, David C. Ensminger, Ulrich Rainer Ernst, Stephen M. Ferguson, Esteban Fernandez-Juricic, Thalita Ferreira-Arruda, John Fieberg, Elizabeth A. Finch, Evan A. Fiorenza, David N. Fisher, Amélie Fontaine, Wolfgang Forstmeier, Yoan Fourcade, Graham S. Frank, Cathryn A. Freund, Eduardo Fuentes-Lillo, Sara L. Gandy, Dustin G. Gannon, Ana I. García-Cervigón, Alexis C. Garretson, Xuezhen Ge, William L. Geary, Charly Géron, Marc Gilles, Antje Girndt, Daniel Gliksman, Harrison B. Goldspiel, Dylan G. E. Gomes, Megan Kate Good, Sarah C. Goslee, J. Stephen Gosnell, Eliza M. Grames, Paolo Gratton, Nicholas M. Grebe, Skye M. Greenler, Maaike Griffioen, Daniel M. Griffith, Frances J. Griffith, Jake J. Grossman, Ali Güncan, Stef Haesen, James G. Hagan, Heather A. Hager, Jonathan Philo Harris, Natasha Dean Harrison, Sarah Syedia Hasnain, Justin Chase Havird, Andrew J. Heaton, María Laura Herrera-Chaustre, Tanner J. Howard, Bin-Yan Hsu, Fabiola Iannarilli, Esperanza C. Iranzo, Erik N. K. Iverson, Saheed Olaide Jimoh, Douglas H. Johnson, Martin Johnsson, Jesse Jorna, Tommaso Jucker, Martin Jung, Ineta Kačergytė, Oliver Kaltz, Alison Ke, Clint D. Kelly, Katharine Keogan, Friedrich Wolfgang Keppeler, Alexander K. Killion, Dongmin Kim, David P. Kochan, Peter Korsten, Shan Kothari, Jonas Kuppler, Jillian M. Kusch, Malgorzata Lagisz, Kristen Marianne Lalla, Daniel J. Larkin, Courtney L. Larson, Katherine S. Lauck, M. Elise Lauterbur, Alan Law, Don-Jean Léandri-Breton, Jonas J. Lembrechts, Kiara L’Herpiniere, Eva J. P. Lievens, Daniela Oliveira de Lima, Shane Lindsay, Martin Luquet, Ross MacLeod, Kirsty H. Macphie, Kit Magellan, Magdalena M. Mair, Lisa E. Malm, Stefano Mammola, Caitlin P. Mandeville, Michael Manhart, Laura Milena Manrique-Garzon, Elina Mäntylä, Philippe Marchand, Benjamin Michael Marshall, Charles A. Martin, Dominic Andreas Martin, Jake Mitchell Martin, April Robin Martinig, Erin S. McCallum, Mark McCauley, Sabrina M. McNew, Scott J. Meiners, Thomas Merkling, Marcus Michelangeli, Maria Moiron, Bruno Moreira, Jennifer Mortensen, Benjamin Mos, Taofeek Olatunbosun Muraina, Penelope Wrenn Murphy, Luca Nelli, Petri Niemelä, Josh Nightingale, Gustav Nilsonne, Sergio Nolazco, Sabine S. Nooten, Jessie Lanterman Novotny, Agnes Birgitta Olin, Chris L. Organ, Kate L. Ostevik, Facundo Xavier Palacio, Matthieu Paquet, Darren James Parker, David J. Pascall, Valerie J. Pasquarella, John Harold Paterson, Ana Payo-Payo, Karen Marie Pedersen, Grégoire Perez, Kayla I. Perry, Patrice Pottier, Michael J. Proulx, Raphaël Proulx, Jessica L Pruett, Veronarindra Ramananjato, Finaritra Tolotra Randimbiarison, Onja H. Razafindratsima, Diana J. Rennison, Federico Riva, Sepand Riyahi, Michael James Roast, Felipe Pereira Rocha, Dominique G. Roche, Cristian Román-Palacios, Michael S. Rosenberg, Jessica Ross, Freya E. Rowland, Deusdedith Rugemalila, Avery L. Russell, Suvi Ruuskanen, Patrick Saccone, Asaf Sadeh, Stephen M. Salazar, Kris Sales, Pablo Salmón, Alfredo Sánchez-Tójar, Leticia Pereira Santos, Francesca Santostefano, Hayden T. Schilling, Marcus Schmidt, Tim Schmoll, Adam C. Schneider, Allie E. Schrock, Julia Schroeder, Nicolas Schtickzelle, Nick L. Schultz, Drew A. Scott, Michael Peter Scroggie, Julie Teresa Shapiro, Nitika Sharma, Caroline L. Shearer, Diego Simón, Michael I. Sitvarin, Fabrício Luiz Skupien, Heather Lea Slinn, Grania Polly Smith, Jeremy A. Smith, Rahel Sollmann, Kaitlin Stack Whitney, Shannon Michael Still, Erica F. Stuber, Guy F. Sutton, Ben Swallow, Conor Claverie Taff, Elina Takola, Andrew J. Tanentzap, Rocío Tarjuelo, Richard J. Telford, Christopher J. Thawley, Hugo Thierry, Jacqueline Thomson, Svenja Tidau, Emily M. Tompkins, Claire Marie Tortorelli, Andrew Trlica, Biz R. Turnell, Lara Urban, Stijn Van de Vondel, Jessica Eva Megan van der Wal, Jens Van Eeckhoven, Francis van Oordt, K. Michelle Vanderwel, Mark C. Vanderwel, Karen J. Vanderwolf, Juliana Vélez, Diana Carolina Vergara-Florez, Brian C. Verrelli, Marcus Vinícius Vieira, Nora Villamil, Valerio Vitali, Julien Vollering, Jeffrey Walker, Xanthe J. Walker, Jonathan A. Walter, Pawel Waryszak, Ryan J. Weaver, Ronja E. M. Wedegärtner, Daniel L. Weller, Shannon Whelan, Rachel Louise White, David William Wolfson, Andrew Wood, Scott W. Yanco, Jian D. L. Yen, Casey Youngflesh, Giacomo Zilio, Cédric Zimmer, Gregory Mark Zimmerman, Rachel A. Zitomer BMC Biology, 2025 Although variation in effect sizes and predicted values among studies of similar phenomena is inevitable, such variation far exceeds what might be produced by sampling error alone. One possible explanation for variation among results is differences among researchers in the decisions they make regarding statistical analyses. A growing array of studies has explored this analytical variability in different fields and has found substantial variability among results despite analysts having the same data and research question. Many of these studies have been in the social sciences, but one small "many analyst" study found similar variability in ecology. We expanded the scope of this prior work by implementing a large-scale empirical exploration of the variation in effect sizes and model predictions generated by the analytical decisions of different researchers in ecology and evolutionary biology. We used two unpublished datasets, one from evolutionary ecology (blue tit, Cyanistes caeruleus, to compare sibling number and nestling growth) and one from conservation ecology (Eucalyptus, to compare grass cover and tree seedling recruitment). The project leaders recruited 174 analyst teams, comprising 246 analysts, to investigate the answers to prespecified research questions. Analyses conducted by these teams yielded 141 usable effects (compatible with our meta-analyses and with all necessary information provided) for the blue tit dataset, and 85 usable effects for the Eucalyptus dataset. We found substantial heterogeneity among results for both datasets, although the patterns of variation differed between them. For the blue tit analyses, the average effect was convincingly negative, with less growth for nestlings living with more siblings, but there was near continuous variation in effect size from large negative effects to effects near zero, and even effects crossing the traditional threshold of statistical significance in the opposite direction. In contrast, the average relationship between grass cover and Eucalyptus seedling number was only slightly negative and not convincingly different from zero, and most effects ranged from weakly negative to weakly positive, with about a third of effects crossing the traditional threshold of significance in one direction or the other. However, there were also several striking outliers in the Eucalyptus dataset, with effects far from zero. For both datasets, we found substantial variation in the variable selection and random effects structures among analyses, as well as in the ratings of the analytical methods by peer reviewers, but we found no strong relationship between any of these and deviation from the meta-analytic mean. In other words, analyses with results that were far from the mean were no more or less likely to have dissimilar variable sets, use random effects in their models, or receive poor peer reviews than those analyses that found results that were close to the mean. The existence of substantial variability among analysis outcomes raises important questions about how ecologists and evolutionary biologists should interpret published results, and how they should conduct analyses in the future.
Historical Demography and Species Distribution Models Shed Light on Speciation in Primates of Northeast India Mihir Trivedi, Kunal Arekar, Shivakumara Manu, Lukas F. K. Kuderna, Jeffrey Rogers, Kyle Kai‐How Farh, Tomas Marques Bonet, Govindhaswamy Umapathy Ecology and Evolution, 2025 Past climate change is one of the important factors influencing primate speciation. Populations of various species could have risen or declined in response to these climatic fluctuations. Northeast India harbors a rich diversity of primates, where such fluctuations can be implicated. Recent advances in climate modeling as well as genomic data analysis has paved the way for understanding how species accumulate at a particular geographic region. We utilized these methods to explore the primate diversity in this unique region in relation to past climate change. To ascertain the population level changes, we inferred the demographic history of nine species of primates found in Northeast India and compared it with species distribution models of Pliocene and Pleistocene period. Through this study, we are able to provide a detailed picture of how past climatic changes have resulted in the present species diversity and this mixture of species have either originated in the region or have dispersed from mainland Southeast Asia. We observe that effective population size has decreased for all the species, but distributions are different for all the four genera: Macaca, Trachypithecus, Hoolock and Nycticebus. It also gives an idea about how each species is affected differently by climate change, and why it should be given emphasis in framing species‐wise conservation models for future climate change.
Geography vs. past climate: the drivers of population genetic structure of the Himalayan langur Kunal Arekar, Neha Tiwari, Sambandam Sathyakumar, Mehreen Khaleel, Praveen Karanth BMC Ecology and Evolution, 2022 Background Contemporary species distribution, genetic diversity and evolutionary history in many taxa are shaped by both historical and current climate as well as topography. The Himalayas show a huge variation in topography and climatic conditions across its entire range, and have experienced major climatic fluctuations in the past. However, very little is known regarding how this heterogenous landscape has moulded the distribution of Himalayan fauna. A recent study examined the effect of these historical events on the genetic diversity of the Himalayan langurs in Nepal Himalaya. However, this study did not include the samples from the Indian Himalayan region (IHR). Therefore, here we revisit the questions addressed in the previous study with a near complete sampling from the IHR, along with the samples from the Nepal Himalaya. We used the mitochondrial Cytochrome-b (Cyt-b, 746 bp) region combined with multiple phylogeographic analyses and palaeodistribution modelling. Results Our dataset contained 144 sequences from the IHR as well as the Nepal Himalaya. Phylogenetic analysis showed a low divergent western clade nested within high divergent group of eastern lineages and in the network analysis we identified 22 haplotypes over the entire distribution range of the Himalayan langurs. Samples from the Nepal Himalaya showed geographically structured haplotypes corresponding to different river barriers, whereas samples from IHR showed star-like topology with no structure. Our statistical phylogeography analysis using diyABC supported the model of east to west colonisation of these langurs with founder event during colonisation. Analysis of demographic history showed that the effective population size of the Himalayan langurs decreased at the onset of last glacial maximum (LGM) and started increasing post LGM. The palaeodistribution modelling showed that the extent of suitable habitat shifted from low elevation central Nepal, and adjoining parts of north India, during LGM to the western Himalaya at present. Conclusion The current genetic diversity and distribution of Himalayan langurs in the Nepal Himalaya has been shaped by river barriers, whereas the rivers in the IHR had relatively less time to act as a strong genetic barrier after the recent colonisation event. Further, the post LGM expansion could have had confounding effect on Himalayan langur population structure in both Nepal Himalaya and IHR.
Integrative taxonomy confirms the species status of the Himalayan langurs, Semnopithecus schistaceus Hodgson, 1840 Kunal Arekar, Sambandam Sathyakumar, K. Praveen Karanth Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research, 2021 Taxonomy is replete with groups where the species identity and classification remain unresolved. One such group is the widely distributed Hanuman langur (Colobinae: Semnopithecus). For most part of the last century, the Hanuman langur was considered to be a single species with multiple subspecies. Nevertheless, recent studies using an integrative taxonomy approach suggested that this taxon is a complex, with at least three species. However, these studies did not include the Himalayan population of the Hanuman langur whose taxonomic status remains unresolved. The Himalayan population of Hanuman langurs has been classified as a distinct species with multiple subspecies or been subsumed into other species. These classification schemes are wholly based on morphological characters which are sometimes insufficient to delimit different species. Here, we have integrated data from multiple sources viz. morphology, DNA, and ecology to resolve the taxonomy of the Himalayan langur and to understand its distribution limit. Our results with three lines of evidence corresponding to three different species concepts show that Himalayan langur is a species distinct from Semnopithecus entellus of the plains. Additionally, these results did not show any support for splitting of the Himalayan langur into multiple subspecies. Our study supports the classification proposed by Hill (Ceylon Journal of Science, XXI, 1939) and we recommend Semnopithecus schistaceus Hodgson, 1840 as species name for the Himalayan langur and subsume all the known subspecies into it.
Phylogenetic diversity as a measure of biodiversity: Pros and Cons K. Praveen Karanth, Srishti Gautam, Kunal Arekar, Baby Divya Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society, 2019 Species richness is predominantly used as one of the fundamental measures of biodiversity for prioritization of areas for conservation. However, species richness often underestimates true diversity, as it does not take into account the evolutionary histories of the species in an area. In this regard, phylogenetic diversity, which incorporates information regarding species relationships in calculating diversity, has been proposed as an alternative. Here we compare species richness and phylogenetic diversity of mammals in nine sanctuaries to explore the importance and use of evolutionary relationships in characterizing diversity. Our analyses suggest that even though species richness and phylogenetic diversity are correlated, they are often decoupled. Importantly, areas with low species richness might harbour high phylogenetic diversity and vice-versa. We recommend the use of both the diversity measures for a holistic understanding of biodiversity and for prioritization of areas for conservation.
RECENT SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS
Same data, different analysts: variation in effect sizes due to analytical decisions in ecology and evolutionary biology E Gould, HS Fraser, TH Parker, S Nakagawa, SC Griffith, PA Vesk, ... BMC biology 23 (1), 35 , 2025 2025 Citations: 120
Historical Demography and Species Distribution Models Shed Light on Speciation in Primates of Northeast India M Trivedi, K Arekar, S Manu, LFK Kuderna, J Rogers, KKH Farh, ... Ecology and Evolution 15 (2), e70968 , 2025 2025 Citations: 1
Genetic Diversity, Geographical Structure, and Demographic History of the Kashmir Gray Langur ( Semnopithecus ajax ) S Hameed, MN Ali, S Manu, K Arekar, M Khaleel, T Bashir, G Umapathy International Journal of Primatology, 1-23 , 2024 2024 Citations: 3
Population genetics of Himalayan langurs and its taxonomic implications S MR, K Arekar, P Karanth bioRxiv, 2024.09. 04.611248 , 2024 2024
Same data, different analysts: variation in effect sizes due to analytical decisions in ecology and evolutionary biology E Gould, HS Fraser, TH Parker, S Nakagawa, SC Griffith, PA Vesk, ... EcoEvoRxiv , 2023 2023
Geography vs. past climate: the drivers of population genetic structure of the Himalayan langur K Arekar, N Tiwari, S Sambandam, M Khaleel, P Karanth BMC Ecology and Evolution 22 (1), 1-15 , 2022 2022 Citations: 9
Understanding the convoluted evolutionary history of the capped-golden langur lineage (Cercopithecidae: Colobinae) K Arekar, A Parigi, KP Karanth Journal of Genetics 100 (2), 1-13 , 2021 2021 Citations: 15
Integrative taxonomy confirms the species status of the Himalayan langurs, Semnopithecus schistaceus Hodgson 1840 K Arekar, S Sathyakumar, KP Karanth Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research 59 (2), 543-556 , 2020 2020 Citations: 18
Phylogenetic diversity as a measure of biodiversity: Pros and Cons KP Karanth, S Gautam, K Arekar, B Divya Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 116, 53-61 , 2019 2019 Citations: 10
Preliminary Assessment of Species Composition and Variation in Fig-Fig Wasp Species in Yakushima Island, Japan and Their Corresponding Phylogenetic Relationships C Lee, ESH Quah, S Nur Juliani, KD Arekar, Y Kuroki, I Nakamura, ... 2016
MOST CITED SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS
Same data, different analysts: variation in effect sizes due to analytical decisions in ecology and evolutionary biology E Gould, HS Fraser, TH Parker, S Nakagawa, SC Griffith, PA Vesk, ... BMC biology 23 (1), 35 , 2025 2025 Citations: 120
Integrative taxonomy confirms the species status of the Himalayan langurs, Semnopithecus schistaceus Hodgson 1840 K Arekar, S Sathyakumar, KP Karanth Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research 59 (2), 543-556 , 2020 2020 Citations: 18
Understanding the convoluted evolutionary history of the capped-golden langur lineage (Cercopithecidae: Colobinae) K Arekar, A Parigi, KP Karanth Journal of Genetics 100 (2), 1-13 , 2021 2021 Citations: 15
Phylogenetic diversity as a measure of biodiversity: Pros and Cons KP Karanth, S Gautam, K Arekar, B Divya Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 116, 53-61 , 2019 2019 Citations: 10
Geography vs. past climate: the drivers of population genetic structure of the Himalayan langur K Arekar, N Tiwari, S Sambandam, M Khaleel, P Karanth BMC Ecology and Evolution 22 (1), 1-15 , 2022 2022 Citations: 9
Genetic Diversity, Geographical Structure, and Demographic History of the Kashmir Gray Langur ( Semnopithecus ajax ) S Hameed, MN Ali, S Manu, K Arekar, M Khaleel, T Bashir, G Umapathy International Journal of Primatology, 1-23 , 2024 2024 Citations: 3
Historical Demography and Species Distribution Models Shed Light on Speciation in Primates of Northeast India M Trivedi, K Arekar, S Manu, LFK Kuderna, J Rogers, KKH Farh, ... Ecology and Evolution 15 (2), e70968 , 2025 2025 Citations: 1
Population genetics of Himalayan langurs and its taxonomic implications S MR, K Arekar, P Karanth bioRxiv, 2024.09. 04.611248 , 2024 2024
Same data, different analysts: variation in effect sizes due to analytical decisions in ecology and evolutionary biology E Gould, HS Fraser, TH Parker, S Nakagawa, SC Griffith, PA Vesk, ... EcoEvoRxiv , 2023 2023
Preliminary Assessment of Species Composition and Variation in Fig-Fig Wasp Species in Yakushima Island, Japan and Their Corresponding Phylogenetic Relationships C Lee, ESH Quah, S Nur Juliani, KD Arekar, Y Kuroki, I Nakamura, ... 2016
