Curator, MBG
Research Interests
• Neotropical floristics and conservation
• Passifloraceae, Olacaceae and Santalaceae
• Catalogue of Bolivian Vascular Plants
• Botanical Inventory of the Madidi Region
• Catalogue of the Vascular Plants of Ecuado
Web Page: MBG
1.) Discovering New Plants from the Andes. The Andes are one of the most diverse regions of the world. They are still largely unexplored and new species continue to be discovered. Carmen Ulloa and Peter Jørgensen have worked for many years in the paramos of southern Ecuador and mountains of Bolivia. Working with colleagues in South America (Universidad del Azuay, Herbario Nacional de Ecuador), they have generated checklists on the vascular flora of Ecuador, and trees and shrubs of the Andes, and other regions, taxonomic treatments, and floras. Their research also includes conservation biology and biogeography. Jørgensen is also part of the Passiflora Research Network. Ulloa and Jørgensen are looking for undergraduates to participate in describing and publishing new species from the Andes. Students will become familiar with Andean biogeography, review relevant taxonomic literature, examine recent collections from Ecuador and Bolivia, and learn to identify specimens using keys and herbarium collections. Specimens that are thought to represent new species will be measured and carefully analyzed. Minute leaf characters and seed structures will be examined with a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Students will assist Ulloa and Jørgensen with the technical description, preparation of distribution maps and images, and publication process.
2.) Seed Variation in Passiflora. Peter Jørgensen is also looking for an undergraduate to conduct a scanning electron microscope survey of seed characters in Passiflora.
Selected Publications
• Jørgensen, P.M. (ed.) 2009. Biodiversity and Conservation in the Andes. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 96(3): 369–520.
• Ulloa Ulloa, C., S. Álvarez Molina, P.M. Jørgensen and D. Minga. 2009. Guía de 100 plantas silvestres del páramo del Parque Nacional Cajas/Cajas National Park field guide of 100 wild plants of the páramo. Spanish/English edition. Pp. 1–90. ETAPA, Cuenca. [Second edition].
• Jørgensen, P. M. 2004. Three new species of Passiflora subgenus Decaloba (Passifloraceae) from Ecuador. Nord. J. Bot. 23(1): 11–19.
• Jørgensen, P.M. and M. Weigend. 2004. Passiflora inca a New Species of Passifloraceae from Peru and Bolivia. Novon 14(1): 79-83.
• Pitman, N.C.A and P.M. Jørgensen. 2002. Estimating the Size of the World's Threatened Flora. Science 298: 989.