Following publication of a magnificent volume on the diversity and biology of palms in the world, Dr. Natalie Uhl at Cornell University and her colleagues will continue their study of taxonomic relationships of palms, particularly those of Madagascar. Special emphasis will be placed on anatomical investigations of ovule and stamen diversity among palms, integrated with other aspects of leaf, stem, flower, and fruit morphology. Collaborating with her Cornell colleague Dr. Jeffrey Doyle, Dr. Uhl will also begin intensive molecular investigations of variability in chloroplast DNA of select groups of palms. This work will generate new data for determining phylogenetic relationships of palm genera, under the likely assumption that similarity in chloroplast DNA composition betokens close evolutionary affinity. The project provides a model example of integrated morphological and molecular analyses of phylogeny in an important group of tropical plants.
