I have a longstanding research interest in Paedocypris, a fish genus from the highly endangered peat swamp forest habitats in Sundaland, that comprises the smallest fish species with 9.7 mm, Paedocypris progentica. My research focuses on the phylogenetic position of Paedocypris with a strong focus on the recurrent evolution of miniaturization either through proportionate dwarfism or developmental truncation in the zebrafish relatives. We have shown that there is an association between developmental truncation and evolutionary novelty in this fish group. Our description of Danionella dracula received world-wide media attention and received the Top Ten New Species Award in 2010. To better understand the genomic consequences of developmental truncation we have sequenced two Paedocypris genomes and found genome miniaturization and extensive Hox gene loss in Paedocypris.
