Leiden, South Holland, Netherlands
Currently working as collection manager at the botanical garden of Leiden and combining this with scientific research and teaching. My interests are in systematic botany and natural history. I like to explore how the diversity on earth evolved and how different morphological traits have adapted to specific ecological conditions. My PhD research was on the pantropical plant genus Phyllanthus where we used genetic information to create a new classification and study the groups dispersal history. Always happy to discuss my research, which I usually do during tours of the botanical garden of Leiden or public lectures.
The Hortus botanicus Leiden houses a wonderful collection of many plant species from all over the world and as collection manager I am tasked with the proper documentation of this collection and to explore how we can effectively use it in other facets of the work at the botanical garden. The botanical garden is the ideal link between science and society and we can showcase the incredible wonders of botany through our research, education and by just bringing people into contact with plants.
My PhD research focused on the tropical plant genus Phyllanthus. This is a massive group of over 800 species, which has seen some issues in its taxonomy. Phyllanthus was created by merging several smaller genera, but recent DNA research has shown it to be mixed with the genera Breynia, Glochidion and Synostemon. Using a few genetic markers, we constructed an evolutionary tree to study the evolution of flower morphology, habit and looked at the groups dispersal history. We also used this to create a new classification for Phyllanthus. I’m also interested in teaching and am involved in teaching for a few courses for the university and the supervision of students for internships.
This project is divided into two parts: The first half of the project is about sequencing DNA of various populations of Erica plukenetii, a bird pollinated heather species from South Africa. This allows us to create a phylogeny of the populations and see if certain sub-species evolved multiple times. The second half of this project will take place at the University of Mainz. Here I will contribute to the phylogeny of the genus Erica by sequencing the DNA of several species. Both parts involve sequencing the DNA of plants of various markers like ITS, ETS and several others.
In this study, I looked at the pollination system of coexisting heath species. During two months of fieldwork in South Africa I did pollinator observations and measured various floral traits in the field. Afterwards we analysed whether species differed in color, floral dimensions, scent and nectar and how this related to their main pollinator.
During my work as a taxonomist at the KAVB, I was involved in the registration and nomenclature of cultivated varieties (cultivars) of many types of plants. The major bulbiferous plant groups were naturally tulips, daffodils, lilies, but I also worked on dahlias and many more. The official registration and rules concerning the naming of new varieties introduced me to a different side of the relation between plant and society. My work also involved looking at trade marks, intellectual property protection through Plant Breeders Rights (PBR), making color descriptions of new varieties and doing evaluations with a committee of experts, while also working on projects like breed distinguishability and a setup for a DNA database.