Were the Tertiary radiations of the Australian flora synchronous? A molecular phylogenetic approach [ 2003-01-01 - 2005-12-31 ]

Research Grant

Researchers: Michael Douglas Crisp (Chief Investigator) ,  The Australian National University (Managed by)

Brief description Were the Tertiary radiations of the Australian flora synchronous? A molecular phylogenetic approach. The fossil record shows that in a short period from about 20 Mya, the ancestral Gondwanan rainforest gave way to the unique Australian ?sclerophyll? flora dominated by eucalypts, acacias and casuarinas. This coincided with a drying climate and the advent of fire. It is hypothesized that ?explosive? evolutionary radiations rapidly increased the number of sclerophyll species, rather than a mere range expansion of pre-existing species. In a novel approach, molecular phylogenies of several distantly related plant groups will be used to test whether explosive evolutionary radiations took place simultaneously and to identify the environmental triggers.

Funding Amount $230,000

Funding Scheme Discovery Projects

View this grant in the ARC Data Portal