Melanie Link-Pérez

Dr. Link-Pérez

Research Interests

I am interested in the evolutionary relationships of plants, the processes and patterns of speciation and diversification, the ecological drivers of that diversification, and the historical biogeography of taxa.† Although I am particularly interested in the seed-free vascular plants (ferns and lycophytes), my underlying research goal is to contribute to our appreciation of plant biodiversity and the evolutionary origins of that biodiversity.

In my research, I use traditional morphological analyses in combination with molecular phylogenetics to resolve species boundaries and evolutionary relationships within taxa of interest—currently the neotropical fern genus Adiantopsis, which is a member of the cheilanthoid clade of the ecologically diverse Pteridaceae. †By integrating morphological, ecological, and geographic data with the phylogenetic framework provided by DNA sequence data, I am gaining insight into the evolutionary patterns and processes (e.g., character evolution and adaptation) in this genus and—by extension—the diversification that has occurred in the neotropics in general.

An avenue of future research will combine my interests in ferns and plant terrestrial ecology by examining recruitment of ferns in local populations of sporophytes, and by comparing the phenology and ecophysiology of widespread taxa that experience different microhabitats or microclimates. Field investigations of this sort will yield important information about habitat selection, ecological safe sites, and the ecological conditions conducive to successful recruitment. Currently, there is a dearth of field studies on fern and lycophyte recruitment, and information gained from such studies can help us develop insight into the evolution, biogeography, and conservation of species.

Adiantopsis radiata in Argentina

Selected Publications:

• Link-Pérez, M.A., and R.J. Hickey. Revision of Adiantopsis radiata (L.) Fée (Pteridaceae) with descriptions of new palmate taxa. To be submitted to Systematic Botany.
• Link-Pérez, M.A., R.J. Hickey, and L.E. Watson. Toward a redefinition of Adiantopsis Fée (Pteridaceae): Systematics, diversification, and biogeography. To be submitted to Taxon.
• Schussler, E.E., M.A. Link- Pérez, K.M. Weber, and V.H. Dollo. In press. Exploring plant and animal content in elementary science textbooks. Journal of Biological Education.
• Link-Pérez, M.A., V.H. Dollo, K.M. Weber, and E.E. Schussler. 2010. What’s in a name: differential labelling of plant and animal photographs in two nationally-syndicated science textbook series. International Journal of Science Education 32(9): 1227-1242, First published on: 22 July 2009 (iFirst).
• Hickey, R.J., C.C. Macluf, and M.A. Link-Pérez. 2009. Isoetes maxima, a new species from Brazil. American Fern Journal 99(3): 194-199.

For more information about this program, contact the Department or Dr. Melanie Link-Pérez.

Other related web pages:

• Department of Botany & Microbiology