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Roberto A. Keller. Completed a Bachelor in Biology in 1998 at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, and a PhD in Entomology in 2008 at Cornell University and the American Museum of Natural History (NY). He is currently an Assistant Researcher at cE3c - Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes and Curator of Entomology at the National Museum of Natural History and Science, Lisbon, Portugal.
Identification

Personal identification

Full name
Roberto Andrés Keller Pérez

Citation names

  • Keller, Roberto A

Author identifiers

Ciência ID
6A11-8909-0DA6
ORCID iD
0000-0003-2751-9761

Email addresses

  • rkeller@edu.ulisboa.pt (Professional)

Addresses

  • Museu Nacional de História Nacional e da Ciência. Rua da Escola Politécnica 56/58, 1250-102, Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal (Professional)

Knowledge fields

  • Natural sciences - Biological Sciences - Entomology

Languages

Language Speaking Reading Writing Listening Peer-review
English Proficiency (C2) Proficiency (C2) Proficiency (C2) Proficiency (C2) Proficiency (C2)
Portuguese Advanced (C1) Proficiency (C2) Advanced (C1) Proficiency (C2) Advanced (C1)
Spanish; Castilian (Mother tongue)
Education
Degree Classification
2008
Concluded
 Entomology (Doutoramento)
Cornell University, United States
"A phylogenetic analysis of morphology for the Poneromorph ant subfamilies (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)
 Pass
1998
Concluded
 Biology (Licenciatura)
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico
"Methodological basis of the use of outgroups in cladistic analysis." (THESIS/DISSERTATION)
 Pass
Affiliation

Science

Category
Host institution 		Employer
2019/05/01 - Current Auxiliary Researcher (Research) Centro de Ecologia Evolução e Alterações Ambientais, Portugal
2016 - 2018 Postdoc (Research) Centro de Ecologia Evolução e Alterações Ambientais, Portugal
2015 - 2015 Postdoc (Research) Centro de Ecologia Evolução e Alterações Ambientais, Portugal
2013 - 2013 Postdoc (Research) Centro de Ecologia Evolução e Alterações Ambientais, Portugal

Positions / Appointments

Category
Host institution 		Employer
2010/01/04 - 2014/01/31 Postdoctoral research Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal

Others

Category
Host institution 		Employer
2019/05/02 - Current Curator of Entomology Museu Nacional de História Natural e da Ciência, ULisboa, Portugal
Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal
2014/02/01 - 2016/12/31 Postdoctoral Fellow Museu Nacional de História Natural e da Ciência, ULisboa, Portugal
1998/09/01 - 2008/08/10 PhD Student Cornell University, United States
Projects

Grant

Designation Funders
2024/01/01 - 2025/10/31 Aligning Reference Collections with tAxonomic Development Efforts for pollinator conservation in Portugal
2/T1
Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI)
Universidade de Coimbra, Portugal

Museu Nacional de História Natural e Ciência, Portugal

Centro de Conservação das Borboletas de Portugal, Portugal

Museu de História Natural e da Ciência da Universidade do Porto, Portugal

Universidade dos Açores, Portugal

Universidade da Madeira, Portugal
Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities
Ongoing
2018/04 - 2019/03 Morphological evolution and functional diversification of head appendages in ants
n/a
Invited Scientist Fellow
Centro de Ecologia Evolução e Alterações Ambientais, Portugal
 Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University Promotion Corp
Concluded
2010/01 - 2016/12 Evolution of caste polyphenism in social insects: patterns of morphological diversification in ants
SFRH/BPD/65529/2009
 Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia
2013/10 - 2014/01 Evolution of the callose synthase gene family and expression across plants
PTDC/BIA-PLA/4018/2012
Post-doc Fellow
Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal
 Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia
Concluded
Outputs

Publications

Encyclopedia entry
  1. Keller, Roberto A; Peeters, Christian. "Poneroid ants". In Encyclopedia of Social Insects. Springer, 2020.
    In press
Journal article
  1. Francisco Hita Garcia; Kiko Gómez; Roberto A. Keller; Bernhard Schurian; Evan P. Economo. "A never-ending story: updated 3D cyber-taxonomic revision of the ant genus Zasphinctus Wheeler (Hymenoptera, Formicidae, Dorylinae) for the Afrotropical region". ZooKeys (2025): https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1223.131238.
    10.3897/zookeys.1223.131238
  2. Kiko Gómez; Csosz Sandor; Jégh Tamas; Keller, Roberto A. Corresponding author: Kiko Gómez. "Aenictus brutus sp. nov., a new species of the army ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Dorylinae) from Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve Forest (Liberia)". Belgian Journal of Entomology 148 (2024): 1-9.
    Open access • Published
  3. Jiménez-Mejías, Pedro; Manzano, Saúl; Gowda, Vinita; Krell, Frank-Thorsten; Lin, Mei-Ying; Martín-Bravo, Santiago; Martín-Torrijos, Laura; et al. "Protecting stable biological nomenclatural systems enables universal communication: A collective international appeal". BioScience 74 7 (2024): 467-472. https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biae043.
    10.1093/biosci/biae043
  4. L Aibekova; R A Keller; J Katzke; D M Allman; F Hita-Garcia; D Labonte; A Narendra; E P Economo. "Parallel And Divergent Morphological Adaptations Underlying The Evolution of Jumping Ability in Ants". Integrative Organismal Biology (2023): https://doi.org/10.1093/iob/obad026.
    10.1093/iob/obad026
  5. Aibekova, Lazzat; Boudinot, Brendon E; Georg Beutel, Rolf; Richter, Adrian; Keller, Roberto A; Hita-Garcia, Francisco; Economo, Evan P. Corresponding author: Aibekova, Lazzat. "The Skeletomuscular System of the Mesosoma of Formica rufa Workers (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)". Insect Systematics and Diversity 6 2 (2022): http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/isd/ixac002.
    10.1093/isd/ixac002
  6. Boudinot, Brendon E; Richter, Adrian; Katzke, Julian; Chaul, Júlio C M; Keller, Roberto A; Economo, Evan P; Beutel, Rolf Georg; Yamamoto, Shûhei. Corresponding author: Boudinot, Brendon E. "Evidence for the evolution of eusociality in stem ants and a systematic revision of Gerontoformica (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 195 4 (2022): 1355-1389. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/zoolinnean/zlab097.
    10.1093/zoolinnean/zlab097
  7. Wang,Chu; Lin, Chung-Chi; Keller, Roberto A; Billen, J.. Corresponding author: Wang,Chu. "The 'hairwheels' in Strumigenys ants are not glandular". Asian Myrmecology 13 e013004 (2021): 1-11. http://www.asian-myrmecology.org/doi/10.20362/am.013004.html.
    Open access • Published
  8. Richter, Adrian; Hita-Garcia, Francisco; Keller, Roberto A; Billen, J.; Katzke, Julian; Boudinot, Brendon E; Economo, Evan P.; Beutel, Rolf G.. Corresponding author: Richter, Adrian. "The head anatomy of Protanilla lini (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Leptanillinae), with a hypothesis of their mandibular movement". Myrmecological News 31 (2021): 85-114. https://myrmecologicalnews.org/cms/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=1581&Itemid=439.
    Open access • Published • 10.25849/MYRMECOL.NEWS_031:085
  9. Peeters, Christian; Keller, Roberto A; Khalife, Adam; Fischer, Georg; Katzke, Julian; Blanke, Alexander; Economo, Evan P.. Corresponding author: Peeters, Christian. "The loss of flight in ant workers enabled an evolutionary redesign of the thorax for ground labour". Frontiers in Zoology 17 1 (2020): http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12983-020-00375-9.
    10.1186/s12983-020-00375-9
  10. Beutel, R.G.; Richter, A.; Keller, R.A.; Hita Garcia, F.; Matsumura, Y.; Economo, E.P.; Gorb, S.N.. "Distal leg structures of the Aculeata (Hymenoptera): A comparative evolutionary study of Sceliphron (Sphecidae) and Formica (Formicidae)". Journal of Morphology 281 7 (2020): 737-753. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85085120799&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
    10.1002/jmor.21133
  11. Richter, A.; Garcia, F.H.; Keller, R.A.; Billen, J.; Economo, E.P.; Beutel, R.G.. "Comparative analysis of worker head anatomy of Formica and Brachyponera (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)". Arthropod Systematics and Phylogeny 78 1 (2020): 133-170. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85086382405&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
    10.26049/ASP78-1-2020-06
  12. Richter, Adrian; Keller, Roberto A.; Rosumek, Félix Baumgarten; Economo, Evan P.; Hita Garcia, Francisco; Beutel, Rolf G.. "The cephalic anatomy of workers of the ant species Wasmannia affinis (Formicidae, Hymenoptera, Insecta) and its evolutionary implications". Arthropod Structure & Development 49 (2019): 26-49. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.asd.2019.02.002.
    Published • 10.1016/j.asd.2019.02.002
  13. Pérez, Roberto. "Skeletomuscular adaptations of head and legs of Melissotarsus ants for tunnelling through living wood". Frontiers in Zoology 15 1 (2018): 30-30. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12983-018-0277-6.
    10.1186/s12983-018-0277-6
  14. Pérez, Roberto. "Striking polymorphism among infertile helpers in the arboreal ant Gesomyrmex". Asian Myrmecology (2017):
    10.20362/am.009015
  15. Keller RA; Peeters C; Beldade P. "Evolution of thorax architecture in ant castes highlights trade-off between flight and ground behaviors.". (2014): http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/24399458.
    10.7554/eLife.01539
  16. Shirai, L.T.; Saenko, S.V.; Keller, R.A.; Jeránimo, M.A.; Brakefield, P.M.; Descimon, H.; Wahlberg, N.; Beldade, P.. "Evolutionary history of the recruitment of conserved developmental genes in association to the formation and diversification of a novel trait". BMC Evolutionary Biology 12 1 (2012): http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84857022702&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
    10.1186/1471-2148-12-21
  17. Peeters, C.; Keller, R.A.; Johnson, R.A.. "Selection against Aerial Dispersal in Ants: Two Non-Flying Queen Phenotypes in Pogonomyrmex laticeps". PLoS ONE 7 10 (2012): http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84867847419&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
    10.1371/journal.pone.0047727
  18. Beldade, P.; Mateus, A.R.A.; Keller, R.A.. "Evolution and molecular mechanisms of adaptive developmental plasticity". Molecular Ecology 20 7 (2011): 1347-1363. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-79953065671&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
    10.1111/j.1365-294X.2011.05016.x
  19. Keller, R.A.. "A phylogenetic analysis of ant morphology (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) with special reference to the poneromorph subfamilies". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 355 (2011): 1-90. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-80051756465&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
    10.1206/355.1
  20. Giannini, N.; Keller, R.A.. "Problems with the application of cladistics to forest fragmentation studies". Cladistics 23 3 (2007): 297-299. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-34250314885&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
    10.1111/j.1096-0031.2007.00147.x
  21. Keller, R.A.; Boyd, R.N.; Wheeler, Q.D.. "The illogical basis of phylogenetic nomenclature". Botanical Review 69 1 (2003): 93-110. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-0037625245&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
  22. Keller, R.A.. "Cladistics of the tribe Ectatommini (Hymenoptera: Formicidae): A reappraisal". Insect Systematics and Evolution 31 1 (2000): 59-69. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-0034370023&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
Activities

Oral presentation

Presentation title Event name
Host (Event location)
2023/06/28 THE EVOLUTIONARY LOSS OF WING MUSCLES ENABLED THE REMARKABLE STRENGTH AND AGILITY OF ANT WORKERS XVII Congreso Internacional de Mirmecología
Escola Superior Agrária (Beja, Portugal)

Event organisation

Event name
Type of event (Role) 		Institution / Organization
2023/10/07 - 2023/10/09 Frontiers in E3: cE3c Annual Meeting (2023/10/07 - 2023/10/09)
Conference (Co-organisor)
 Centro de Ecologia Evolução e Alterações Ambientais, Portugal
2021/10 - 2021/11 Symposium: Functional Morphology and Biomechanics in Social Insects (2021/10/07 - 2021/10/07)
Symposium (Co-organisor)
 International Union for the Study of Social Insects - European Section, France
2014/12/22 - 2014/12/22 X Encontro Nacional de Biologia Evolutiva (2014/12/22 - 2014/12/22)
Conference (Member of the Organising Committee)
 Museu Nacional de História Natural e Ciência, Portugal

Interview (newspaper / magazine)

Activity description Newspaper / Forum
2023/12/10 News Story on the construction of a new insect reserve to host the insect collections of the Museu Nacional de História Natural e da Ciência Journal PÚBLICO

Interview (tv / radio show)

Program Topic
2023/12/16 - 2023/12/16 SIC Noticias Nova Entomoteca no Museu Nacional de História Natural e da Ciência
Distinctions

Other distinction

2010 Postdoctoral fellowship
Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal
2000 Rawlins Endowment
Cornell University, United States
2000 Graduate Student Fellowship
American Museum of Natural History, United States
1998 Fellowship Program for Graduate Studies Abroad
Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología, Mexico
1990 Scholarship for high school level education
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico