People
Smith, Rhian J.
| Job Title | Research assistant to the Director |
|---|---|
| Department | Directorate |
| Section | Directorate |
| Science Teams |
United Kingdom Myrtaceae Monocots II: Commelinids Large-Scale Syntheses Monocots III: Orchids |
| Joined Kew | 2005 |
| Foreign Language(s) | basic French and Welsh. |
Qualifications & Appointments
BSc (1st class Hons), Univ. Wales (Cardiff), 1997
PG Dip. Statistics (Distinction), Univ. Dublin (Trinity College), 2001
PhD, Univ. Dublin (Trinity College), 2004
Role
Research into plant diversity, evolution and conservation.
My role as research assistant to the Director involves conducting scientific research on broad issues in plant diversity, evolution and conservation. This research spans a number of disciplines and aims to answer questions on biogeography, phylogenetics, reproductive biology and ecology, whilst also addressing broad questions in plant evolution, speciation, landscape processes and conservation. Major research is focused on the southwest Australian biodiversity hotspot, the biogeography and conservation of granite outcrop floras and the phylogeny and conservation of the Haemodoraceae. These projects involve a wide range of internal and external collaborators.
Projects
Conservation Genetics of UK Plants
Granite outcrop plants- biogeography, evolution and conservation
Haemodoraceae - phylogenetics, biology and conservation
Old climatically-buffered infertile landscapes - evolution and conservation of biodiversity
Population Genetics of UK Orchids
Systematics, evolution and conservation of Australian orchids
Systematics and conservation of Western Australian Eucalypts
Selected Publications 2001-2005
Smith, R.J. (2004). Conservation Biology of Colchicum autumnale and Campanula trachelium in the Nore Valley, Southeast Ireland. PhD Thesis. University of Dublin, Trinity College.
Smith, R.J., Waldren, S. & Rich, T.C.G. (2004). Genetic variation in European populations of wild asparagus, Asparagus prostratus. Report for the Countryside Council of Wales and the National Parks and Wildlife Service, Ireland.
Smith, R.J. & Waldren, S. (2005). Conservation genetics of Luronium natans in the UK and Ireland. Report for the National Parks and Wildlife Service, Ireland.
Smith RJ, Waldren S (2006). Genetic variation in Irish threatened plant species: a European perspective. In: Botanical Links in the Atlantic Arc (eds. Leach SJ, Page CN, Peytoureau Y, Sanford MN), pp. 137-145. Botanical Society of the British Isles.