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Alison Evans

PhD Student and Associate Lecturer

Profile

Biography

Alison joined the Biology Department in 2019 as an Associate Tutor and MRes student. Having retired from General Practice and Medical Education, she has taken the opportunity to start a second career, following a lifelong interest in plants and genetics. Over the last 20 years, ferns have become a particular interest, and she has contributed to research on Cystopteris, Hymenophyllum, Polypodium, and most recently the Dryopteris affinis complex, the subject of her MRes and PhD.

From 2008 to 2013 she was Education Officer for the British Pteridological Society, organising events to help the public recognise our native ferns, and also to engage families in Museum-based events showcasing ‘Ferns and Fossils’. She also runs ‘Natural World’ fern identification workshops for the public in the Botany Department, World Museum Liverpool.

Research Interests

Morphology, ploidy level, and genetic markers of taxa in the Dryopteris affinis (Lowe) Fraser-Jenk. complex in Britain and Ireland.

Teaching

  • Field Botany
  • Plant Diversity
  • Plants and People

Public/media engagement

Genetic composition of morphologically distinct members of the apogamous Dryopteris affinis complex in Britain and Ireland. Ecological Genetics Group Meeting, Cambridge, 16 – 18 April 2019.