The California Botanical Society27th Annual Graduate Student Symposium

April 6th, 2019California Polytechnic State University

San Luis Obispo, CA

Photo by Kyle Nessen

27th Annual Graduate Student Symposium Fisher Science Building, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo

California Botanical Society Annual Meeting and Banquet

Performing Arts Center Pavilion

7 pm — Keynote Address by Dr. David Lowry Dr. David Lowry grew up in Sonoma County, where he first came to appreciate fog and the strong environmental gradient between coastal and inland habitats of California. He attended UC Berkeley and received a BS in Genetics and Plant Biology in 2001. Lowry studied the evolution of coastal and inland ecotypes of the yellow monkeyflower, Mimulus guttatus, for his PhD at Duke University, which he received in 2010. He then went on to a postdoctoral position at the University of Texas, Austin, where he studied evolutionary adaptations in switchgrass, Panicum virgatum. Since 2014, Lowry has been an assistant professor in the Department of Plant Biology at Michigan State University.

Dr. Lowry’s talk will focus on understanding the evolution of coastal and inland ecotypes of the yellow monkeyflower in western North America. Particular attention will be paid to the environmental factors driving the formation of ecotypes and the genetic and physiological changes underlying their evolution.

Field Trips Friday, April 5, 3- 5 pm — Serpentine Irish Hills with Nishi Rajakaruna and Kristen Nelson

Sunday, April 7, 8:30 am - 2 pm — Wildflowers of Shell Creek Rd with David Keil

7:30-8:30 am Registration, poster set up, coffee and snacks8:30-8:45 am Opening Remarks Room 33-2868:45-10 am Morning Talks10-11:30 am Poster Session

11:30-12:30 pm Midday Talks12:30-1:30 pm Lunch, in the Fisher Science Building Lobby1:30-2:30 pm Afternoon Talks2:30-4:30 pm Botanical Tour through Poly Canyon with Matt Ritter

4:30-5 pm Awards and Closing Remarks Room 33-286

5-6 pm Botany Mixer6-7:45 pm Annual banquet with keynote speaker David Lowry

8:30-8:45 am — Opening Remarks, Rm 33-286

Morning Session Rm 33-2858:45-9 am Jason Johns The genetic basis of alpine adaptation in columbines

9-9:15 am Cody Rice Understanding the Genetic Diversity of Darlingtonia californica Population Clusters

9:15-9:30 am Danielle Black The genetic basis of serpentine adaptation in Aquilegia eximia

9:30-9:45 am Julia Harencar The genetics of speciation in spiral gingers

9:45-10 am Ryan Buck Interspecific Hybridization in Pinyon Pines

Morning Session Rm 33-286

8:45-9 am Andy SiekkinenSystematics of Hechtia (Hechtioideae): Insights in phylogenetics and plastome evolution in a non-model organism with Next Generation Sequencing

9-9:15 am Peter Breslin Molecular phylogeny of the genus Mammillaria (Cactaceae) in Baja California and adjacent regions

9:15-9:30 am Keir Morse Taxonomy and Conservation of the genus Malacothamnus (Malvaceae)

9:30-9:45 am Simone Benjamin Genetic Sex Ratios and Skewed Sex Ratios in Syntrichia caninervis

9:45-10 am Dylan Cohen Herbarium Genomics: Testing for phylogenetic signal and assessing rarity in Chilean Loasaceae

Morning Session Rm 33-289

8:45-9 am Justin Luong Can Functional Traits Inform Coastal Prairie Restoration?

9-9:15 am Drew Wolter Pre- and Post-Herbicide Performance on Threespike Goosegrass in Tree Nut Orchards

9:15-9:30 am Mitchell Coleman Factors affecting seedling recruitment of the desert shrub Atriplex polycarpa across six sites in the San Joaquin Valley, California

9:30-9:45 am Mitchell Bamford Comparison of bunchgrass planting methods in invaded grasslands

9:45-10 am Adrian Poloni Monitoring of Heteroabsion occidentale root disease centers in true fir forests of Stanislaus National Forest, California

10-11:30 am — Poster Session in Lobby

Midday Session Rm 33-285

11:30-11:45 am Randy Long Does hybrid Phragmites australis differ from native and introduced lineages in reproductive, genetic, and morphological traits?

11:45-12 pm Emily Cox Lasthenia gracilis and water stress: A glimpse into the future of California grasslands

12-12:15 pm Jaycie Fickle Risk of freeze-thaw induced vascular system damage in chaparral shrub species at low and high elevation

12:15-12:30 pm Robert Fitch Soil resource availability and its effect on the ecophysiology and establishment of Stipa pulchra

Midday Session Rm 33-286

11:30-11:45 am Dena Paolilli Assessing alpine vegetation community shifts in the Sierra Nevada of California

11:45-12 pm Natalie Love A new quantitative phenological metric for use in pheno-climatic models: a case study using herbarium specimens of Streptanthus tortuosus

12-12:15 pm Paul Excoffier Seed longevity and climatic tolerance of San Joaquin Woollythreads (Monolopia congdonii; Asteraceae)

12:15-12:30 pm Shane Dewees Determining potential drivers of chaparral conversion in a southern California fire scar

Midday Session Rm 33-289

11:30-11:45 am Christina Varnava Flora of the Western Sespe Creek Watershed

11:45-12 pm Reed Kenny Traversing Swanton: a multigenerational floristic study

12-12:15 pm Maria Jesus A vascular flora of Conglomerate Mesa and Malpais Mesa, Inyo County, CA

12:15-12:30 pm Stephanie Ma The potential of mature shrubs to facilitate chaparral seedling establishment

12:30-1:30 pm — Lunch in Fisher Science lobby

Afternoon Session Rm 33-2851:30-1:45 pm Kyle Nessen Global patterns in tree wood color

1:45-2 pmJenna T. B. Ekwealor

The evolution of UV tolerance in Mojave Desert biocrust mosses

2-2:15 pm Kristen Peach Heteranthery in Clarkia: pollen performance of dimorphic anthers contradicts expectations

Afternoon Session Rm 33-2861:30-1:45 pm Ryan Salladay The Importance of Vascular Physiology for Surviving Fire

1:45-2 pm Justine Rojas Biomechanics and Anatomy of Stems of Typical Inland and Coastal Pygmy Forms of Quercus agrifolia in Relation to Exposure to Wind

2-2:15 pm Sophia Huang Leaf Physiology as a Predictor of Drought Tolerance in Urban Trees

2:15-2:30 pm Viridiana Castro Balancing different functional demands in plant vascular tissue: Does resprouting affect vascular structure and function?

Afternoon Session Rm 33-2891:30-1:45 pm Kyle Gunther Uncovering the evolutionary history and population demographics of the

narrowly distributed Mission Manzanita (Xylococcus bicolor)1:45-2 pm Ugbad Farah Environmental and Geographic Differentiation in Syntrichia caninervis

2-2:15 pmAlexandra McElwee-Adame

Population Structure Analysis of the Sympatric Distribution of Arbutus in the Sierra Madre Occidental Mountains of Durango, Mexico

2:30-4:30 pm — Botanical Tour through Poly Canyon with Dr. Matt Ritter (meet in Fisher Science lobby)

4:30-5 pm — Closing Remarks and Awards, Rm 33-286

Poster Session 10 - 11:30 am Fisher Science Lobby

1 Claire Abbott Taxonomy of the Cryptantha clevelandii complex (Boraginaceae)

2 Jennifer Apland Is plant diversification associated with pollinator shifts along elevation gradients in the neotropics?

3 Brittany Goldston Is topographic complexity driving speciation in the neotropical genus Costus?

4 Mary Devlin Impacts of Multiple Nutrient Element Enrichment on Native and Non-Native Plant Species in Serpentine Soils

5 Alex Jacob Pena Greenhouse Studies to Explore the Factors and Mechanisms Driving Speciation in the Layia gladulosa-L. discoidea Complex

6 Zach Raposo Post-fire Plant Diversity across Serpentinite and Metavolcanic Substrates under the Influence of Fire Retardant

7 Anthony Ferrero Work in Progress: Can drought conditions induce enhanced Nickel hyperaccumulation in Streptanthus polygaloides (Brassicaceae)?

8 Constantin RaetherDefense against herbivory by galling Cynipidae wasps in valley oak (Quercus lobata): Testing the Plant Vigor Hypothesis (PVH) and the Phenological Synchrony Hypothesis (PSH) in a large common garden experiment

9 Richard Graham-Bruno Distribution and Establishment Limitations of Cirsium hydrophilum var. hydrophilum (Asteraceae), a Federally Endangered Tidal Wetland Species

10 Erin Coltharp & Chloe Knowd Do leaf mites benefit coast live oak?

11 Drew Gilberti Natural history of Disholcaspis eldoradensis, a galling wasp of Valley Oak (Quercus lobata): distribution, nectar, and interactions with ants

12 Joanna Tang Exotic Species Invasion in Restored Vernal Pools

13 Rachel Hunter Do fire retardants have an effect on soil chemistry and plant diversity?

14 Shelley BennettDiffering host preference and susceptibility among riparian host species and implications for invasive shot hole borer (Euwallacea spp.) infestations in southern California

15 Morgan Stickrod Liminal living: dispersal versus safe sites in a brackish tidal wetland

16 Ella Abelli-Amen Do functional traits predict shifts in alpine plant communities in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks?

Poster Session 10 - 11:30 am Fisher Science Lobby

17 Brittany Cook Comparing apples to apples: enhancing reference genomes for cross-cultivar functional genomics in tree fruit

18 Niveditha Ramadoss Psyllid- induced dieback of Eucalyptus moluccana on the Cumberland Plain Woodland of Australia

19 Daniel Jaques Investigating interspecific hybridization and introgression in Ceanothus ophiochilus, an endangered southern California endemic shrub

20 Carly Miranda Population Genetics of Suisun thistle Cirsium hydrophilum var. hydrophilum and relationships to its close relatives

21 Jake Sarver Exploring Foliar Fungal Endophyte Assemblage, Diversity, and Host Specialization in Pine

22 Nancy Conejo Biogeography of the whorled wattles (Acacia section Lycopodiifoliae) in the Australian Monsoon Tropics

23 Drew Wolter Pre- and Post-Herbicide Performance on Threespike Goosegrass in Tree Nut Orchards

24 Adrian Poloni Monitoring of Heteroabsion occidentale root disease centers in true fir forests of Stanislaus National Forest, California

25Molly Vanderlip & Claire Rowland Exploring trends of UV and visible color variation in Erythranthe bicolor

26 Alec Chiono Differences in thermal niche between coastal and inland populations of the yellow monkeyflower (Mimulus guttatus)

27 Melissa Enright Seasonal variation in redwood branch hydraulic conductivity: the critical link between climate and tree growth

28 Vivian Avila & Elias Mendoza Reintroducing a Self-Incompatible Endangered Species - An Experimental Approach

29 Theresa LujanA phylogenetic and morphological analysis of biogeography and dispersal mechanism evolution in Channel Islands endemic Malacothrix (Asteraceae)

30 Rachael Auer Does flower color in Leptosiphon parviflorus predict serpentine tolerance?

31 Cailey Clarke Coast Redwoods in the Face of Climate Change

32 Jennifer Poore Private timber has added valuable botanical data to California's Natural Diversity Database

33 Annie Ayers The California Phenology Collections Network: Using herbarium specimens to study flowering time

Poster Session 10 - 11:30 am Fisher Science Lobby

17 Brittany Cook Comparing apples to apples: enhancing reference genomes for cross-cultivar functional genomics in tree fruit

18 Niveditha Ramadoss Psyllid- induced dieback of Eucalyptus moluccana on the Cumberland Plain Woodland of Australia

19 Daniel Jaques Investigating interspecific hybridization and introgression in Ceanothus ophiochilus, an endangered southern California endemic shrub

20 Carly Miranda Population Genetics of Suisun thistle Cirsium hydrophilum var. hydrophilum and relationships to its close relatives

21 Jake Sarver Exploring Foliar Fungal Endophyte Assemblage, Diversity, and Host Specialization in Pine

22 Nancy Conejo Biogeography of the whorled wattles (Acacia section Lycopodiifoliae) in the Australian Monsoon Tropics

23 Drew Wolter Pre- and Post-Herbicide Performance on Threespike Goosegrass in Tree Nut Orchards

24 Adrian Poloni Monitoring of Heteroabsion occidentale root disease centers in true fir forests of Stanislaus National Forest, California

25Molly Vanderlip & Claire Rowland Exploring trends of UV and visible color variation in Erythranthe bicolor

26 Alec Chiono Differences in thermal niche between coastal and inland populations of the yellow monkeyflower (Mimulus guttatus)

27 Melissa Enright Seasonal variation in redwood branch hydraulic conductivity: the critical link between climate and tree growth

28 Vivian Avila & Elias Mendoza Reintroducing a Self-Incompatible Endangered Species - An Experimental Approach

29 Theresa LujanA phylogenetic and morphological analysis of biogeography and dispersal mechanism evolution in Channel Islands endemic Malacothrix (Asteraceae)

30 Rachael Auer Does flower color in Leptosiphon parviflorus predict serpentine tolerance?

31 Cailey Clarke Coast Redwoods in the Face of Climate Change

32 Jennifer Poore Private timber has added valuable botanical data to California's Natural Diversity Database

33 Annie Ayers The California Phenology Collections Network: Using herbarium specimens to study flowering time

Poster Session 10 - 11:30 am Fisher Science Lobby

1 Claire Abbott Taxonomy of the Cryptantha clevelandii complex (Boraginaceae)

2 Jennifer Apland Is plant diversification associated with pollinator shifts along elevation gradients in the neotropics?

3 Brittany Goldston Is topographic complexity driving speciation in the neotropical genus Costus?

4 Mary Devlin Impacts of Multiple Nutrient Element Enrichment on Native and Non-Native Plant Species in Serpentine Soils

5 Alex Jacob Pena Greenhouse Studies to Explore the Factors and Mechanisms Driving Speciation in the Layia gladulosa-L. discoidea Complex

6 Zach Raposo Post-fire Plant Diversity across Serpentinite and Metavolcanic Substrates under the Influence of Fire Retardant

7 Anthony Ferrero Work in Progress: Can drought conditions induce enhanced Nickel hyperaccumulation in Streptanthus polygaloides (Brassicaceae)?

8 Constantin RaetherDefense against herbivory by galling Cynipidae wasps in valley oak (Quercus lobata): Testing the Plant Vigor Hypothesis (PVH) and the Phenological Synchrony Hypothesis (PSH) in a large common garden experiment

9 Richard Graham-Bruno Distribution and Establishment Limitations of Cirsium hydrophilum var. hydrophilum (Asteraceae), a Federally Endangered Tidal Wetland Species

10 Erin Coltharp & Chloe Knowd Do leaf mites benefit coast live oak?

11 Drew Gilberti Natural history of Disholcaspis eldoradensis, a galling wasp of Valley Oak (Quercus lobata): distribution, nectar, and interactions with ants

12 Joanna Tang Exotic Species Invasion in Restored Vernal Pools

13 Rachel Hunter Do fire retardants have an effect on soil chemistry and plant diversity?

14 Shelley BennettDiffering host preference and susceptibility among riparian host species and implications for invasive shot hole borer (Euwallacea spp.) infestations in southern California

15 Morgan Stickrod Liminal living: dispersal versus safe sites in a brackish tidal wetland

16 Ella Abelli-Amen Do functional traits predict shifts in alpine plant communities in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks?

The California Botanical Society27th Annual Graduate Student Symposium

April 6th, 2019California Polytechnic State University

San Luis Obispo, CA

Photo by Kyle Nessen