Daniel Nickrent
Adjunct Faculty, School of Integrative Plant Science Plant Biology Section
A broad description of my research area would be plant evolutionary biology, including a range of subdisciplines such as genomics, phylogenetics, systematics, population genetics, and taxonomy. From an organismal perspective, my major focus has been upon parasitic flowering plants, particularly the sandalwood order (Santalales). The wet lab portion of my research has generated DNA data that have been used to examine phylogenetic relationships as well as to study molecular evolutionary processes. In addition to molecular work, I continue to study the “whole plant” through detailed examination of plant morphology and anatomy. I am involved in several floristic projects and these are tied to my interest in photographic documentation and photographic databases.
Interests
Plant evolutionary biology
Genomics, phylogenetics, systematics, population genetics, and taxonomy
Parasitic flowering plants (Santalales in particular)
Recent Research
I am currently funded by NSF on a project documenting the flora of the southern Philippines. The other two PIs are Peter Fritsch (Botanical Research Institute of Texas, Ft. Worth, TX) and Darin Penneys (University of North Carolina, Wilmington). Another project involves generating complete chloroplast genome sequences for members of the sandalwood order, Santalales. Collaborators include Huei-Jiun Su (National Taiwan University), Joshua Der (California State University Fullerton), Gitte Petersen (Stockholm University, Sweden), Sarah Mathew (Louisiana State University) and Marcos Caraballo (Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C.). With over 350 species, Thesium (Thesiaceae) is the largest genus in Santalales. Along with Miguel García (Real Jardín Botánico de Madrid, Spain) we have generated a comprehensive molecular phylogeny of Thesium.
Publications
View publications on Google Scholar
- García, M.A., Mucina, L. & Nickrent, D. L. 2024. A tough nutlet to crack: Resolving the phylogeny of Thesium (Thesiaceae), the largest genus in Santalales. Taxon 73(1):190-236. doi.org/10.1002/tax.13123
- Cai, L., Kreft, H., Taylor, A., Denelle, P., Schrader, J., Essl, F., van Kleunen, M., Pergl, J., Pyšek, P., Stein, A., Winter, M., Barcelona, J.F., Fuentes, N., Inderjit, Karger, D.N., Kartesz, J., Kuprijanov, A., Nishino, M., Nickrent, D., Nowak, A., Patzelt, A., Pelser, P.B., Singh, P., Wieringa, J.J., & Weigelt, P. 2022. Global models and predictions of plant diversity based on advanced machine learning techniques. New Phytologist. doi.org/10.1111/nph.18533
- Nickrent, D. L. 2022. Santalales, order of the sandalwood family. Pp. 717-728, in: The New Natural History of Madagascar, ed. S. M. Goodman. Princeton University Press. 2296 pp.
- Nickrent, D. L. & Rule, M. G. 2022. An evaluation of the genus Cyne (Loranthaceae) including a new species and rediscovery and neotypification of the rare C. quadriangula. Phytotaxa 558(1): 67-80. doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.558.1.4
- Mazo, K. R., D. L. Nickrent, & P. B. Pelser. 2022. Macrosolen zamboangensis (Loranthaceae), a new mistletoe species from Zamboanga Peninsula, Philippines. Webbia. Journal of Plant Taxonomy and Geography 77: 127-134. doi:10.36253/jopt-12339
- Nickrent, D. L. & A. Vartak. 2021. Parasitic flowering plants on postal stamps: Vehicles for learning. Current Science 121: 1538-1548. doi:10.18520/cs/v121/i12/1538-1548
- Su, H.-J., S.-L. Liang, & D. L. Nickrent. 2021. Plastome variation and phylogeny of Taxillus (Loranthaceae). PLoS ONE 16:e0256345. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0256345
- Nickrent, D. L., H.-J. Su, R.-Z. Lin, M. P. Devkota, J. -M. Hu, & G. Glatzel. 2021. Examining the needle in the haystack: evolutionary relationships in the mistletoe genus Loranthus Jacq. (Loranthaceae). Systematic Botany 46: 403-415. doi.org/10.1600/036364421X16231785234748
- Nickrent, D. L. 2020. Gymnosiphon syceorosensis (Burmanniaceae), the second new species for the Philippines, to PhytoKeys 146:71-87. doi.org/10.3897/phytokeys.146.48321
- Nickrent, D. L. 2020. Parasitic angiosperms: How often and how many? Taxon 69: 5-27. doi.org/10.1002/tax.12195
- Pelser, P. B., D. L. Nickrent, B. W. van Ee, & J. F. Barcelona. 2019. A phylogenetic and biogeographic study of Rafflesia (Rafflesiaceae) in the Philippines: limited dispersal and high island endemism. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 139: 106555. doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2019.106555
- Nickrent, D. L., F. Anderson, & J. Kuijt. 2019. Inflorescence evolution in Santalales: Integrating morphological characters and molecular phylogenetics. American Journal of Botany 106: 402-414. doi.org/10.1002/ajb2.1250
- Maul, K., M. Krug, D. L. Nickrent, K. F. Müller, D. Quandt, & S. Wicke. 2019. Morphology, geographic distribution and host preference are poor predictors of phylogenetic relatedness in the mistletoe genus Viscum L. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 131: 106-115. doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2018.10.041
- Amico, G. C., D. L. Nickrent, & R. Vidal-Russell. 2019. Macroscale analysis of mistletoe host ranges in the Andean-Patagonian forest. Plant Biology 21: 150-156. doi.org/10.1111/plb.12900
Contact Information
430B Mann Library
Ithaca, NY 14853
dn277 [at] cornell.edu
More information
Education
Doctorate
Miami University
1984Master of Science
Old Dominion University
1979Bachelor of Arts
Southern Illinois University
1977
Daniel in the news
News
- School of Integrative Plant Science
- Plant Biology Section