GIORGI CHALADZE (2018)

Academic Biography:

• born in 1984 in Tbilisi, Georgia
• Bachelor’s Studies: Environmental Protection and Rational Use of Natural Resources, Georgian Technical University, from 2001 to 2005
• Master’s Studies: Faculty of chemical Engineering and Metallurgy, Georgian Technical University, from 2005 to 2007
• Doctoral Studies/Doctorate: “Invertebrate Biodiversity Modeling and Database Development in the Caucasus Ecoregion” Dissertation (2015, Summa Cum Laude), Ilia State University, School of Natural Sciences And Engineering, from 2008 to 2015
• Scientific Position(s): Researcher, Ilia State University, since 2009
• Employment:
• Environmental Specialist, HeidelbergCement Caucasus, from 2012 to 2017
• Environmental Manager, HeidelbergCement Georgia, since 2017

Brief Description of the short-term Research Project:

“Estimation of invertebrate Population Size based on Movement Patterns”

Pitfall trapping is a standard method for collecting ground-dwelling arthropods but the numbers trapped individuals depend not only on the population density also on the activity of animals, as well as on other factors. Therefore, numbers of trapped individuals did not allow direct estimation of population density but only of activity-density. Different sized animals move and are trapped with different rate, even for same species, because of this when sampling most of insect (except social insects) by method which depends on their activity, size distribution is almost always skewed positively. Animal that moves more will be encountered more often in the traps than less mobile individuals. Size and movement ability is also correlated-larger organisms are able to move on larger distances. Within this project I plan to (1) experimentally estimate movement patterns of different sized individuals (model organism: Tenebrio molitor), (2) using simulation conduct computer experiment of trapping different sized individuals and propose estimation of real population density based on proportion of different sized individuals. Project will show if real population density can be estimated by calibrating sampled data using distribution of body sizes of a sample. Model will be validated experimentally for different population sizes.

Publications:

• Chaladze, Giorgi, Levan Kalatozishvili, Zurab Janiashvili, and Giorgi Bakuradze. (2017) Pterostichus neilgaimani sp. nov., a new species of ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) from relict sacred grove in Eastern Georgia. Zootaxa 4329(1): 91-95. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4329.1.6 PDF
• Chaladze, G. Kalatozishvili L. (2017). Linnaeus 5-Dataset for Machine Learning HTML
• Chaladze, G. (2017). Taxonomy should be more photography based-eliminate need of physical specimen to study morphology. Zootaxa, 4247(3), 331-331. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4247.3.6
• Chaladze, G. (2017). Man-made microrefugium of Pterostichus anthracinus. http://chaladze.com/p/p.anth/ HTML
• Chaladze, G. (2016). Illustrated Checklist of Georgian Stag beetles (Coleoptera, Lucanidae). Proceedings of The Institute of Zoology. Vol. XXV. 43-45. PDF
• Chaladze, G. (2016). Heterosexual Male Carriers Could Explain Persistence of Homosexuality in Men: Individual-Based Simulations of an X-Linked Inheritance Model. Archives of sexual behavior, 1-7. doi: 10.1007/s10508-016-0742-2. PDF
• de Jong, Y., Kouwenberg, J., Boumans, L., Hussey, C., Hyam, R., Nicolson, N., ... & Boegh, P. S. (2015). PESI-a taxonomic backbone for Europe. Biodiversity data journal, (3). DOI: doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.3.e5848. PDF
• Chaladze, G. (2015). Invertebrate Biodiversity modeling and database development in The Caucasus Ecoregion. PhD dissertation Ilia State University. PDF
• Chaladze, G., Otto, S., & Tramp, S. (2014). A spider diversity model for the Caucasus Ecoregion. Journal of insect conservation, 18(3), 407-416. DOI: 10.1007/s10841-014-9649-1. PDF
• Chaladze, G. (2012). Climate-based model of spatial pattern of the species richness of ants in Georgia. Journal of Insect Conservation, 16(5), 791-800. DOI: 10.1007/s10841-012-9464-5. PDF
• Chaladze. G. 2008. Checklist of diving beetles (Insecta, Coleoptera, Dytiscidae) of Georgia. Proceedings of the institute of zoology of Georgia, 124-130. PDF
• Reck, N., & Chaladze, G. (2004). Checklist of the Ground Beetles (Coleoptera, Carabidae) of Georgia. Proc. Inst. Zool, 22, 127-157.
• Angus, R. B., Galián, J., Wrase, D. W., & Chaladze, G. (2008). The western Palaearctic species of the Pterostichus nigrita (Paykull) complex, with the description of a new species from Spain and a new subspecies of P. nigrita from Anatolia (Coleoptera, Carabidae). Nouv Rev Entomol, 25, 297-316. PDF

Grants (own Grants and Participation in Grants):

• Principal Investigator/Team leader, Entomologist. Sacred groves of Georgia, potential for biodiversity conservation, from 2016 to 2017, Donor: GIZ
• Principal Investigator/Team leader. Creation of Arthropod Vectors Database of Especially Dangerous Pathogens, 2013, Donor: GRDF

Scientific Awards/Prizes:

• Pascal Prize, Ilia State University, Tbilisi/Georgia, 2016
• Pascal Prize, Ilia State University, Tbilisi/Georgia, 2014

Contact Information:

• E-Mail: Giorgi.chaladze@gmail.com