Duke Herbarium

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  • Jonathan Shaw

  • Duke Herbarium
  • BioSci: 331
  • Campus Box 90338
  • Phone: (919) 660-7344
  • Fax: 919-660-7293
  • Homepage
  • Curriculum Vitae

  • Specialties

    • Bryophytes

  • Research Summary

    Evolution and diversity of bryophytes

  • Research Description

    My research centers on the evolution and diversity of bryophytes. Current projects in the lab include molecular phylogenetic analyses of familial and ordinal level relationships in the arthrodontous mosses, studies of hybridization using molecular and morphological markers, and investigations of cryptic speciation within geographically widespread species. My own particular focus (as opposed to those of post-docs and graduate students in the lab) at present is the genus Sphagnum (peatmosses). Ongoing research is grounded in phylogenetic analyses at various levels of biological organization from populations up to genus-wide. We utilize DNA sequence data from the nuclear, chloroplast, and mitochondrial genomes to infer historical processes of biodiversification. I have a special interest in the genetic structure of both rare and widespread species. Morphological and molecular information is being used to explore geographic patterns in phylogenetic diversity within the peatmosses. Of particular interest are biogeographic relationships between boreal, tropical, and Southern Hemisphere taxa, and between New and Old World taxa. Our data base presently includes nucleotide sequences from multiple loci representing some 500-600 accessions of peatmosses. Additional information about this ongoing work can be found here. The bryology laboratory is engaged in ongoing collaborative research projects with the New York Botanical Garden, the University of Connecticut, the Missouri Botanical Garden, and the University of Alberta. Additional information about these projects can be found here. I serve as Curator of the Bryophyte Herbarium, which includes approximately 230,000 collections of mosses, liverworts, and hornworts. The collections represent a central resource for bryological research at Duke, and we are actively integrating molecular investigations with field work and collections- based approaches.

  • Current Projects

    Phylogeny and biogeography of peatmosses (Sphagnum), Resolving the moss Tree-of-Life

  • Education

      • PhD,
      • University of Michigan,
      • 1983

  • Awards, Honors and Distinctions

      • Richard Spruce Award,
      • International Association of Bryologiists,
      • December 2010

  • Recent Publications

      • Johnson, M., B. Shaw, P. Zhou, & A. J. Shaw.
      • (2012).
      • Genetic analysis of the peatmoss Sphagnum cribrosum (Sphagnaceae) indicates independent origins of an extreme infra-specific morphology shift..
      • Biological Journal of the Linnean Society
      • ,
      • 106
      • ,
      • 137-153.
      • Shaw, A. J., K. I. Flatberg, P. Szövényi, M. Ricca, M. G. Johnson, H. K. Stenøien, & B. Shaw.
      • (2012).
      • Systematics of the Sphagnum fimbriatum complex: phylogenetic relationships, morphological variation, and allopolyploidy.
      • Systematic Botany
      • ,
      • 63
      • ,
      • 351-364.
      • Shaw, A. J., B. Shaw, M. Higuchi, T. Arikawa, Y. Hirayama, & N. Devos.
      • (2012).
      • Climacium (Climaciaceae): species relationships and biogeographic implications.
      • Bryologist
      • ,
      • 115
      • ,
      • 23-30.
      • Shaw, A. J., B. Shaw, M. Ricca, & K. I. Flatberg.
      • (2012).
      • A phylogenetic monograph of the Sphagnum subsecundum complex (Sphagnaceae) in eastern North America.
      • Bryologist
      • ,
      • 115
      • ,
      • 128-152.
      • Ho, B.-C., L. Pokorny, B. Tan, J.-P. Frahm, A. J. Shaw, & D. Quandt.
      • (2012).
      • Molecular evolution and diversification of the moss family Daltoniaceae (Hookeriales, Bryophyta) with emphasis on unraveling the phylogeny of Distichophyllum and its allies.
      • Botanical Journal of the Linnaean Society
      • ,
      • 170
      • ,
      • 157–175.
  • View All Publications

  • Postdoctoral Students

    • Boon-Chuan Ho
      • 03/2010 - preesent
    • Peter Slovenyi
      • 2007 - present
    • Nico Devos
      • November 15, 2007 - present
    • Lisa Karst
      • August 15, 2007 - present
    • Jing Yu
      • August, 2007 - present
    • Piers Majestyk
      • December 15, 2006 - present
    • Gisela Olivan
      • January 01, 2006 - December 15, 2006
    • Christine Davis
      • October 1, 2005 - present
    • Ping Zhou
      • Started in Fall, 2003
      • Thesis: Not determined
    • Alain Vanderpoorten
      • January 1, 2002 - October 1, 2003

  • PhD Students

    • Jessica Nelson
    • Arielle Garrett
      • August, 2012 - present
    • Matthew G Johnson
      • September, 2007 - present
    • Mariana Ricca
      • September, 2006 - present
    • Lisa Pokorny
      • September, 2006 - present
    • Ping Zhou
      • 2004 - present
    • Kim Ryall
      • 2004 - present
      • 2004 - present
    • Christine Davis
      • Status: PostPrelim
      • Thesis: Fungal endophytes of liverworts: diversity and phylos
Jonathan Shaw
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