The lab
Thais Vasconcelos
(Principal Investigator)
My work centers around the intersection of traits, geographical
distribution, and diversification in the plant world. My long-term goal
is to gain a comprehensive understanding of how these factors interact
and shape the evolution of flowering plants. (my first name is
pronounced “tah-EES”)
CV
here tvasc@umich.edu | Thais’ GitHub | Thais’ Twitter | Thais’
Google scholar
Aline Martins
(Postdoctoral Fellow)
I am an entomologist, largely influenced by botanists, who was always
fascinated by plant-pollinator interactions and evolution. The most
important question of my research is how bees and plants mutually
influenced their evolution in time and space and which traits have
played a role in this long-term mutualism. My main group of study are
bees in the family Apidae, but also other bee groups and plants. maline@umich.edu | Aline’s Website | Aline’s
Research Gate | Aline’s
Twitter
Lena Heinrich
(PhD student)
I am broadly interested in plant-pollinator interactions, evolution, and
behavioral ecology. I completed my BA in Zoology and minor in Plant
Biology in 2022, at the University of Vermont. My undergraduate research
projects included studying the genetic control of flowering phenology,
the development of nectar-producing glands, and the impacts of
parasitism risk by wasps on the nesting behavior of solitary bees. Here
at the University of Michigan, I will be working with Thais and Aline to
study patterns and drivers of bee diversity, with a particular focus on
nesting ecology and mutualisms with flowering plants. lenarh@umich.edu
Paulo Henrique Gaem, MSc
(PhD student)
I am interested in systematics and evolution of highly diverse tropical
plant lineages. My work is focused on the Neotropical region, with the
hyper-diverse woody genus Myrcia DC. (Myrtaceae) as a model. I
have a bachelor’s degree in Forest Engineering and a master’s degree in
Plant Biology, both obtained in Brazil. I’m currently a PhD student at
the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology department of the University of
Michigan, Ann Arbor. In this new step, I intend to explore the
diversification patterns and build on the systematic knowledge of the
still poorly understood lineage Myrcia section
Aulomyrcia (O.Berg) Griseb. phgaem@umich.edu | Paulo’s
Research Gate | Paulo’s
Google scholar Gate
co-advised grad students | collaborations
Sandra Reinales, MSc
(PhD student, USP-Brazil)
Sandra is a botanist interested in systematics, biogeography and
morphological evolution, in a macroevolutionary context. Currently, she
is a PhD student at USP (Brazil) under the supervision of Dr. José
Rubens Pirani, where she studies diversification dynamics in the tribe
Sauvagesieae (Ochnaceae). She is testing some mechanisms (e.g. dispersal
capacity) that could explain the unbalanced species richness and the
recent geographical distribution of Neotropical Ochnaceae, focusing on
the montane areas of South America. In her spare time Sandra is also
interested in historical collections of Colombian botanists. spreinales@gmail.com | Sandra’s
Research Gate | Sandra’s
Twitter
Patrícia Sperotto, MSc
(PhD student, UFRGS-Brazil)
Patrícia earned her MSc. from the UEFS (Brazil) working with systematics
and macroevolution of neotropical climbing plants, especially focusing
on the role of climbing mechanisms in their diversification. Currently,
she is a PhD student at UFRGS (Brazil) under the supervision of
Dr. Marcelo Reginato and her project involves exploring the influence of
cytogenetic characteristics (e.g., WGD events, polyploidy and genome
size) and morphological traits in the macroevolutionary dynamics,
geographic distribution and niche occupation of Melastomataceae. patriciassperotto@gmail.com | Patricia’s twitter | Patricia’s
ResearchGate
Thiago Fernandes, MSc
(PhD student, JBRJ-Brazil)
Thiago is a PhD student in Botany at the Rio de Janeiro Botanic Garden
interested in systematics and conservation and under the supervision of
Dr. João M. A. Braga. His studies are focused on Neotropical Myrtaceae,
specifically the megadiverse genus Myrcia. He is currently
working on a taxonomic account of Myrcia species occurring in
the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro along with spatial biodiversity
analyses applied to the conservation of the Alantic Forest. Another
research interest is to investigate the spatial distribution of floral
traits in Atlantic Forest Myrcia. thiagofernandes@id.uff.br | Thiago’s
ResearchGate
Milena Telhe
(PhD student, UFSCar-Brazil)
My main scientific interest revolves around understanding the
evolutionary processes shaping diversity, especially within the
Neotropical region. As a Ph.D. student, I am passionately engaged in
exploring the rich biodiversity and the evolutionary dynamics in the
arid regions of the Neotropics, using cacti as a lens to examine these
dry and enigmatic landscapes. milena.telhe@gmail.com
Hercilia Cunha
(MSc student, UFRN-Brazil)
Hercília is a MSc student in Ecology at PPGECO/UFRN under the
supervision of Dr. Vanessa Staggemeier. In her project, she aims to
answer the question “What fruits and seeds of Myrtaceae can reveal about
the success of this family in the Neotropics?”. She is interested in
patterns associated with seed dispersal in Myrtaceae, such as size and
color of seeds and fruits. She seeks to understand whether these
patterns can explain the diversification of this group. herciliad7@gmail.com | Hercilia’s twitter | Hercilia’s
ResearchGate | Hercilia’s ORCID