Abstract Detail

A Botanist at the Extreme: Honoring the great contributions of Dr. Vicki A. Funk

Bonifacino, Mauricio [1], Mandel, Jennifer [2].

The Reinvention of Compositae: Vicki Funk’s legacy in the systematics of the largest plant family on Earth.

Vicki Ann Funk was an American botanist and a leading figure on the taxonomy, systematics, and biogeography of Compositae in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Of her many contributions to these fields was Vicki’s ardent defense of the value, and the necessity of strong collections-based research for plant systematics. We will delve into Vicki’s contribution to Compositae systematics and explore how she was often at the forefront of research in the areas of plant phylogenetics, systematics, and collections. She pioneered the use of cladistics in plant systematics in the late 1970s and the early 1980s and helped develop and put in practice novel methods for understanding plant evolutionary relationships. During the next-generation sequencing revolution of the 2010s, she was again at the leading edge developing new tools for studying the world’s largest flowering plant family. Throughout this, she continuously made use of the latest methods and approaches to study evolutionary diversification, biogeography, and classification in Compositae. She spared no effort in supporting small herbaria across the globe, constantly aware (and reminding those around her) of the paramount importance of collections at all levels of plant research. She envisioned producing a global database to track nomenclature in Compositae, and she saw this massive effort through its origin and implementation connecting researchers across the globe to contribute. Truly, in all she did, there was a genuine desire to connect people always in pursuit of better knowing the Compositae.

1 - Universidad de la República (Uruguay)
2 - University Of Memphis, Biological Sciences, 3700 Walker Ave, 339 Ellington Hall, Memphis, TN, 38152, United States

Keywords:
Compositae
Asteraceae
systematics
phylogeny
Collections
Herbarium.

Presentation Type: Symposium Presentation
Number: S4002
Abstract ID:529
Candidate for Awards:None