Audrey Ragsac, newly minted PhD, successfully defended her dissertation today! Her work focused on distribution and phylogeny of two pan-tropical and neo-tropical plant groups, Tecoma and Jacaranda. She explored field sites all over South America and utilized phylogenetic techniques to better understand the evolution and dispersal of these two plant groups. “It is easier to move than to evolve,” yet Audrey points out “but evolving is more fun.”
PhD Keywords: Bignoniaceae, phylogeny, neo-tropics, pan-tropics, biome shift, biome conservation, divergence, evolution, biogeographic reconstruction, distribution, biomes, biodiversity
