Associate Scientist William L. Brown Center
Research Interests • Malagasy flora • Plant systematics • Identification, quality control, and systematics of medicinal plants
Taxonomic studies of new species of Hypoestes from Madagascar. Applequist, the current REU program PI, is an Associate Scientist in MBG’s William L. Brown Center, with research interests involving medicinal plants and taxonomy of the flora of Madagascar. Hypoestes (Acanthaceae) is a subtropical genus of herbs and shrubs with diverse floral and leaf morphology and with ornamental potential. Its center of diversity is in the biological hotspot of Madagascar, where over 90 species were described by 1962 --and none have been described since. There is no modern revision and no key to species, so the genus has been badly understudied and undercollected. In this project, a student will study herbarium material and specimen images from a small group of species that appears to include one or more new species. The participating student will go through all the stages of describing a new species and preparing a manuscript, from identifying key characters and confirming its novelty to preparing a full description, selecting a name and type, compiling information from labels, and estimating conservation status. It is possible for the student participating in this project to receive co-authorship on a publication resulting from this work.
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