Kathleen M. Pryer

Professor in the Department of Biology

Office: 
358 Bio Sci Bldg, Durham, NC 27708
Campus Box: 
Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708-0338
Phone: 
(919) 660-7380
My research focuses on understanding the evolutionary relationships of ancient land plants, especially ferns and horsetails, by integrating evidence from morphology, molecules (DNA sequence data from multiple genes), and the fossil record. I use an explicit phylogenetic framework to examine the morphological evolution of various sporophytic and gametophytic characters within vascular plants, and to gain insight into the evolution of various life history traits and the body plans that typify vascular plants. A phylogenetic perspective also informs my molecular evolutionary studies that attempt to elucidate why we observe remarkable rate heterogeneity in chloroplast genes in land plant phylogeny.

Education

  • Ph.D., Duke University 1995

  • M.S., University of Guelph (Canada) 1981

  • B.S., McGill University (Canada) 1976

Nagalingum, NS, Schneider, H, and Pryer, KM. "Molecular phylogenetic relationships and morphological evolution in the heterosporous fern genus Marsilea." Systematic Botany 32, no. 1 (2007): 16-25. Full Text

Korall, P, Pryer, KM, Metzgar, JS, Schneider, H, and Conant, DS. "Tree ferns: monophyletic groups and their relationships as revealed by four protein-coding plastid loci." Mol Phylogenet Evol 39, no. 3 (June 2006): 830-845. Full Text

Schuettpelz, E, and Pryer, KM. "Reconciling extreme branch length differences: decoupling time and rate through the evolutionary history of filmy ferns." Syst Biol 55, no. 3 (June 2006): 485-502. Full Text

Schuettpelz, E, Korall, P, and Pryer, KM. "Plastid atpA data provide improved support for deep relationships among ferns." Taxon 55, no. 4 (2006): 897-906.

Smith, AR, Pryer, KM, Schuettpelz, E, Korall, P, Schneider, H, and Wolf, PG. "A classification for extant ferns." Taxon 55, no. 3 (2006): 705-731.

Nagalingum, NS, Schneider, H, and Pryer, KM. "Comparative morphology of reproductive structures in heterosporous water ferns and a reevaluation of the sporocarp." International Journal of Plant Sciences 167, no. 4 (2006): 805-815. Full Text

Korall, P, Conant, DS, Schneider, H, Ueda, K, Nishida, H, and Pryer, KM. "On the phylogenetic position of Cystodium: It's not a tree fern - It's a polypod!." American Fern Journal 96, no. 2 (2006): 45-53. Full Text

Wikström, N, and Pryer, KM. "Incongruence between primary sequence data and the distribution of a mitochondrial atp1 group II intron among ferns and horsetails." Mol Phylogenet Evol 36, no. 3 (September 2005): 484-493. Full Text

Pryer, KM, Schuettpelz, E, Wolf, PG, Schneider, H, Smith, AR, and Cranfill, R. "Phylogeny and evolution of ferns (monilophytes) with a focus on the early leptosporangiate divergences." Am J Bot 91, no. 10 (October 2004): 1582-1598. Full Text

Schneider, H, Schuettpelz, E, Pryer, KM, Cranfill, R, Magallón, S, and Lupia, R. "Ferns diversified in the shadow of angiosperms." Nature 428, no. 6982 (April 1, 2004): 553-557. Full Text

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