Advisory Board and Editors Taxonomy
Michel Laurin
Michel Laurin is a Research Scientist at CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique). His specialty is the evolution of vertebrates from the Devonian to the Triassic. His current interests include dating the tree of life using paleontological data using new methods, bone microanatomy and paleohistology, biological nomenclature, as well as other problems such as the invasion of land by vertebrates and the origin of extant amphibians. Dr Laurin's work has introduced many innovations in paleontology and paleobiology, notably in the form of various computer programs, mostly developed by his collaborators, some of which can be used to perform paleontological dating of the tree of life or to analyse bone microanatomical data. He has supervised 7 doctoral students so far and has led the team “Squelette des vertébrés” (which included eight tenured scientists, a postdoc, a technician, and six doctoral students) from 2007 to 2008, he has also been the leader of the team "Metazoan Phylogeny and Diversification" since 2014. He is a member of several scientific societies, and has served the ISPN (International Society for Phylogenetic Nomenclature) as both Secretary and President. He served one term as President of the Association Paléontologique Française (APF). He is a frequent reviewer for over 50 journals and currently serves on seven editorial boards, including for the Journal of Evolutionary Biology. In January 2011, he became Chief Editor of the Comptes Rendus Palevol.
Jim Leebens-Mack
Prof. James H. Leebens-Mack is a Professor of Plant Biology within the Department of Plant Biology at the University of Georgia, US.
His research employs genomic, phylogenetic and experimental analyses to investigate the genetic and ecology processes that influence diversification. Specific interests include the molecular genetics of diversification including speciation; the molecular basis of adaptation; the evolution of genome structure; genomic processes influencing gene family evolution; the evolutionary consequences of species interactions; and the coevolution of genes interacting in regulatory and developmental pathways.
Elliot J Lefkowitz
Professor of Microbiology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB); Director of Informatics for the UAB Center for Clinical and Translational Science; Data Secretary of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) and Editor-In-Chief of the ICTV Online (10th) Report on Virus Taxonomy. My research focuses on contributing to the understanding of microbial (especially viral) genomics and evolution by developing and utilizing computational tools and bioinformatics techniques to mine sequence and other data for significant patterns characteristic of function and/or evolution.
Bruce S Lieberman
Dr. Bruce Lieberman is a paleontologist and evolutionary biologist interested in macroevolution and the evolutionary history of invertebrates.
Charlotte Lindqvist
Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo 2010-present; Postdoctoral Fellow/Research Associate, University of Oslo 2003-2008; PhD, University of Copenhagen 2003.
Raquel López-Antoñanzas
Raquel López-Antoñanzas is a CNRS researcher at the Institut des sciences de l'évolution (University of Montpellier). In 2004, she received her PhD from the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle in Paris (France). She works on the evolution of micromammals with a special focus on those from the Cenozoic of the Old World.
Wagner Magalhães
Oceanographer with a Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, USA and currently Assistant Professor of Zoology at the Federal University of Bahia, Brazil. Research interests include benthic ecology, trophic ecology and systematics, with special focus on taxonomy of annelid polychaetes.
Santiago Martín-Bravo
I am an Associate Professor and researcher at Botany Area of the Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemical Engineering at Pablo de Olavide University (Seville, Spain). I am a botanist but I also like to define myself as an evolutionary biologist. My final objective is to contribute to the knowledge and conservation of the biodiversity that surrounds us. My main research interests are on systematics and evolution of angiosperms. I try to answer questions related with the topics of when, how and why are species (and in general biodiversity) generated. I am also very interested in biogeography, this is, explaining the processes causing the distribution of species. To accomplish these task, I use multidisciplinar approaches ranging from classic taxonomy to molecular phylogenetics, estimation of divergence times, cytogenetic evolution, phylo- and biogeographic analyses. Finally, I am also interested in conservation biology, particularly in relation with conservation genetics. I am also the curator of UPOS herbarium
Ian R McDonald
BSc (Hons) University of Ulster, PhD Liverpool University. Postdoc and NERC Advanced Research Fellow at Warwick University. I have been at the University of Waikato since 2004 and was promoted to Professor in 2018. My research has focused on the microbial ecology of methane oxidation, Antarctica and geothermal environments in New Zealand. In Antarctica we are studying the drivers of microbial diversity in Dry Valley soils, geothermal environments (Mts Erebus, Melbourne and Rittmann), and terrestrial meltwater ponds. Currently ‘The 1000 Spring project’ is determining drivers of microbial diversity in NZ geothermal environments. I have organized several NZ and international conferences, I am currently the Chief Officer of SCAR Life Sciences.
Andrew Mitchell
Dr. Andrew Mitchell is a Senior Research Scientist at the Australian Museum Research Institute. His research interests include systematics of noctuid moths (Lepidoptera), molecular phylogenetics, insect diversity, species delimitation and diagnostics, and DNA barcoding.
Blanca Moncunill-Solé
I am a palaeobiologist interested in unravelling the biology and evolutionary dynamics of extinct small mammal taxa, particularly on lagomorphs. During my early career, I have developed models for reconstructing the size of past small mammals, and the use cutting-edge palaeontological techniques (e.g. palaeohistology) for disentangling their biology and evolutionary history. These studies allow me to establish the first long-term database of evolutionary responses of small mammals to insularity, being useful for conservation purposes of extant ones. Besides, I am an active researcher in outreaching (articles, workshops, media interviews, exhibition curator, social and outreaching projects, etc.), to bring science to society and to spread my results. At present, my research lines are focused on determination of the evolutionary and ecological dynamics of extinct lagomorphs to past climate and environmental changes, identifying the drivers, biological shifts and extinction rates. In fact, revealing how this family evolved to past environmental changes will contribute to the development of more effective conservationist strategies and policies for threatened extant taxa, helping, hence, in the present and future ecosystem management and protection
Juan J Morrone
Full professor of Biogeography, Systematics and Comparative Biology at the Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Mexico. He works on phylogenetic systematics of weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) and evolutionary biogeography and regionalization of the Neotropical and Andean regions.