The Cavender-Bares Lab

Research in plant functional and phylogenetic ecology

NSF Press Release 12-146

"Tale of Two Scientific Fields--Ecology and Phylogenetics--Offers New Views of Earth's Biodiversity: Scientists report new look at 'patterns in nature' in special issue of journal Ecology"

Click here to view the full NSF press release.

Research Interests

Physiological ecology of plants
Application of phylogenetic methods to ecology
Evolution of plant function, environmental gradients and local adaptation
Phylogeography and conservation

I am broadly interested in how functional traits of plants link evolutionary history to current ecological processes. In particular I seek to understand how the evolutionary and biogeographic history of organisms influences community assembly, species composition and, hence, ecosystem function. Currently, my lab is combining phylogenetic and phylogeographic approaches with studies of plant physiological function to understand forces underlying shifts in stress tolerance among closely related species or among populations of the same species. I am also leading an NCEAS working group with colleagues from across the LTER network and beyond on "Linking phylogenetic history, plant traits, and environmental gradients at local and continental scales."