Institute for Biodiversity Science and Sustainability

My primary research focuses on the systematics, biogeography, and evolution of members of the flowering plant order Ericales, a group of about 23 plant families that includes many well-known plants such as blueberry, phlox, persimmon, primrose, and tea. Many of the plants in this order are disjunct relicts, which means that they were once (in the Tertiary period) widespread but are now restricted in range to discrete and widely separated areas of the earth due to climate change. These areas include California, southern Europe, eastern North America and eastern Asia. I use a combination of morphological and molecular approaches on ericalean groups to understand their species diversity, evolutionary relationships, and adaptations to particular environments. The patterns of relictualism and speciation elucidated from these studies can eventually lead to a better overall understanding of the effects and significance of climate change on the world's biota.

We are currently testing these ideas in a phylogenetic context by analyzing DNA sequences of Symplocos species from throughout the distribution of the genus. Preliminary results are tending to support a Northern Hemisphere origin for the group with subsequent migration to South America. This pattern has also been found in Styrax (Styracaceae), another member of Ericales. Through international collaboration I am expanding studies on amphi-Pacific tropical disjuncts to include other members of Ericales such as Clethra (Clethraceae) and Gaultheria (Ericaceae, wintergreen) in an attempt to detect general patterns of intercontinental dispersal among these groups.

Within the context of this research I also conduct studies in floristics and taxonomy. I lead a long-term, large-scale survey and inventory of the biota of the Gaoligong Mountains in western Yunnan Province, China. This survey is documenting the land plants, arthropods, vertebrates, and Quaternary vertebrate fauna of this biodiversity. Three primary institutes form the primary collaboration in this project: the Kunming Institute of Botany, the Kunming Institute of Zoology, and the CAS. The project is discovering many new species to science and many new records for the region, and also is developing a comprehensive GIS-based data set for use in biogeographical analysis and conservation management strategies for the local government. My colleagues and I are preparing taxonomic treatments of various plant groups based on this research. This complements my past and current monographic studies and taxonomic revisions on Styracaceae and Symplocos (such as treatments for Flora of China, Flora Neotropica, and Flora of North America).

Education

Ph.D. (Botany) Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden Program in Botany and Claremont Graduate School, Claremont, California, 1995

M.S. (Botany) University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 1988

B.S. (Biology) University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 1983

Present Position (2007–)

Curator of Botany, California Academy of Sciences, 2007–

Appointments

Board Member, Quarryhill Botanic Garden, 2009-

Associate Curator of Botany, California Academy of Sciences, 2002–2007

Research Professor, San Francisco State University, 1998–

Fellow of the California Academy of Sciences, 2001–

Chair, Department of Botany, California Academy of Sciences, 2000–2002

Assistant Curator of Botany, California Academy of Sciences, 1996–2002

Visiting Professor, Zhongshan University, People's Republic of China, 2001–2004

Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Botany, Duke University, 1994–1996

Research Assistant, The Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, 1989–1992

Teaching Assistant, Cytogenetics, The Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, 1992

Botanical Surveyor, U.S. Forest Service and Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, 1990

Herbarium Technician, University of Michigan, 1989

Field and Research Assistant, School of Natural Resources, University of Michigan, 1988

Teaching Assistant, Woody Plants, University of Michigan, 1988

Research Assistant, Department of Paleontology, University of Michigan, 1987–88

Field Assistant, Department of Botany, University of Michigan, 1987

Laboratory Assistant, University of Michigan, 1983

Educational Service

Docent tours for 4th-5th grade Sonoma County schools, Quarryhill Botanical Garden, 2009–

Annual mentor, Summer Systematics Institute, 8-week student internship at the California Academy of Sciences, 1998–

Annual lecturer, Summer Systematics Institute 3-hr course on molecular systematics, 1998–2006

Dissertation Opponent for Ida Trift, Stockholm University, 2004

3-hour seminar, Strybing Arboretum, docents training course on biogeography, 20

Guest lecturer on the biogeography of plants, San Francisco State University/CAS, 1999

Science Advisor for a high school course on evolution ("Voyages through Time"), a collaboration between the SETI Institute, California Academy of        

Sciences, NASA Ames Research Center, and San Francisco State University, 1998–2002.

3-hour seminar (given twice), CAS, docents training course, land plant evolution, 1998

Committee member for five Masters students, San Francisco State University, 2002–

Advisor for the following students:

Shannon Lucas (1997), Kara Shockey (1998), Candice Meldrum (1999), Jessica Oppenheimer (2003), Anja Schiller (2004, 2005), Sarah Bury (2006), and Adam Bruehl (2007), all through the Summer Systematics Institute, an NSF-sponsored eight- to ten-week summer program for undergraduates in systematic biology.

Anya Illis and Meg Stalcup, Biological Illustration interns (summer, 1998, 1999)

Edith Davis (2008), undergraduate summer intern

Ph.D. co-advisor for the following students:Yelin Huang, Zhongshan University, Guangzhou, China;Yuguo Wang, Zhongshan University, Guangzhou, China; Lu Lu, Kunming Institute of Botany, Kunming, China; João Aranha, University of Campinas, Campinas, Brazil; Ji Yunheng, Kunming Institute of Botany, China.

Grants and Awards

National Science Foundation, “Collaborative Research: Phylogenetic, Biogeographic, and Monographic Studies in the Wintergreen Group”, 2007–2010, $255,837. PI; collaborative PI: Kathy Kron, Wake Forest University.

John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, “Biodiversity of the Gaoligongshan”, 2005–2008, $225,000. PI; N. Jablonski, co-PI. 

National Geographic Society, "Biotic Survey of the Gaoligongshan, a Biodiversity Hotspot in China", 2002–2003, $35,000. PI; N. Jablonski, D. Kavanaugh, S. L. Dao, co-PIs.

National Science Foundation Systematic Biology, "Historical Biogeography of Symplocos, an Amphi-Pacific Tropical Disjunct Clade", 2002–2006, $147,209; PI; co-PI, Frank Almeda.

National Science Foundation Biotic Surveys and Inventories, "Biotic Survey of the Gaoligongshan, a Biodiversity Hotspot in Western Yunnan, China", 2002–2007,  $2,403,296; PI; Nina Jablonski, co-PI.

California Academy of Sciences research grants, 1997–2001, total of $6000

Duke/Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship, 1994–1996

Duke Research Awards, 1994, 1995, $2700

National Science Foundation Dissertation Improvement Grant (C.T. Philbrick, PI), 1993, $9500

Mellon Foundation Graduate Fellowship, 1993

Mellon Foundation Travel/Research Award, 1992–1993, $5000

Mellon Foundation Summer Fellowship, 1992–1993

Hardman Foundation Grant, 1992, $500

American Society of Plant Taxonomists/NSF AIBS Travel Award, 1992, $500

Claremont Graduate School, Graduate Student Council Research Grant, 1991, $230; 1992, $500; 1993, $497

American Society of Plant Taxonomists Research Grant, 1991, $250

Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden Research Fellowship, 1989–1992

Claremont Graduate School Tuition Scholarship, 1989–1994

Hanes Fund Grant, 1988–1989, $1280

University of Michigan Tuition Scholarship, 1987–1988

University of Michigan Biological Station Summer Scholarship, 1982

Field Experience

Malaysia, Sabah, Borneo, 2009; New Zealand, 2007; Central Colombia, 2006; Southern China, 1997, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006; Southeastern Brazil, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2009; Southern Mexico, 1992, 1995, 2004; Puerto Rico, 2003; Dominican Republic, 2001; Cuba, 2000; Madagascar, 1998; Eastern Nepal, 1994; Greece, 1993; Baja California, Mexico, 1993; West Texas and northeastern Mexico, 1991; California, ongoing since 1990; San Clemente Island, California, 1990; Hillsdale County, Michigan, 1985–1989; University of Michigan Biological Station, 1982

• Fritsch, P. W. and L. H. Rieseberg. 1992. High outcrossing rates maintain male and hermaphrodite individuals in populations of the flowering plant Datisca glomerata. Nature 359: 633–636.
• Fritsch, P. W. 1992. Scutellaria nervosa (Lamiaceae): A species of skullcap new to Michigan. Michigan Botanist 31: 37–38.
• Rieseberg, L. H., C. T. Philbrick, P. E. Pack, M. A. Hanson, and P. W. Fritsch. 1993. Inbreeding depression in androdioecious populations of Datisca glomerata (Datiscaceae). American Journal of Botany 80: 757–762.
• Fritsch, P. W., M. A. Hanson, C. D. Spore, P. E. Pack, and L. H. Rieseberg. 1993. Constancy of RAPD primer amplification strength among distantly related taxa of flowering plants. Plant Molecular Biology Reporter 11: 10–20.
• Fritsch, P. W. 1993. Vascular plant species new to Hillsdale County, Michigan. Michigan Botanist 32: 269–282.
• Fritsch, P. W. and L. H. Rieseberg. 1996. The use of random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) in conservation genetics. In T. Smith and B. Wayne (eds.), Molecular Genetic Approaches in Conservation, pp. 54–73. Oxford Univ. Press, New York.
• Fritsch, P. W. 1996. Isozyme analysis of intercontinental disjuncts within Styrax (Styracaceae): Implications for the Madrean-Tethyan hypothesis. American Journal of Botany 83: 342–355.
• Fritsch, P. W. 1996. Population structuring and patterns of morphological variation in the Californian endemic Styrax redivivus. Aliso 14: 205–218.
• Fritsch, P. W. 1997. A revision of Styrax (Styracaceae) from western Texas, Mexico, and Mesoamerica. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 84: 705–761.
• Fritsch, P. W. 1999. Phylogeny of Styrax based on morphological characters, with implications for biogeography and infrageneric classification. Systematic Botany 24: 355–378.
• Fritsch, P. W. 1999. Styracaceae. In P. M. Jørgensen and S. León-Yánez (eds.), Catalogue of the Vascular Plants of Ecuador, p. 922. Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis.
• Fritsch, P. W. Styracaceae. 2000. Flora Mesoamericana Volume 4. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México, D. F. Available on-line at http://mobot.mobot.org/Pick/Search/meso.html.
• Fritsch, P. W. and S. A. Lucas. 2000. Clinal variation in the Halesia carolina complex (Styracaceae). Systematic Botany 25: 197–210.
• Fritsch, P. W. 2001. Phylogeny and biogeography of the flowering plant genus Styrax (Styracaceae) based on chloroplast DNA restriction sites and DNA sequences of the internal transcribed spacer region. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 19: 387–408.
• Fritsch, P. W., C. M. Morton, C. T. Chen, and C. Meldrum. 2001. Phylogeny and biogeography of the Styracaceae. International Journal of Plant Sciences 162(S6): S95–S116.
• Davis, C. C., P. W. Fritsch, J.-H. Li, and M. J. Donoghue. 2002. Phylogeny and biogeography of Cercis (Fabaceae): Evidence from nuclear ribosomal ITS and chloroplast ndhF sequence data. Systematic Botany 27: 298–302.
• Fritsch, P. W., S. A. Mori, and J. L. Brown. 2002. Styracaceae. In S. A. Mori, G. Cremers, C. A. Gracie, J.-J. de Granville, S. V. Heald, M.Hoff, and J. D. Mitchell (eds.), Guide to the Vascular Plants of Central French Guiana. Part 2. Dicotyledons. Memoirs of the New York Botanical Garden 76(2): 706–708.
• Davis, C. C., C. D. Bell, P. W. Fritsch, and S. Mathews. 2002. Phylogeny of Acridocarpus-Brachylophon (Malpighiaceae): Implications for Tertiary tropical floras and Afroasian biogeography. Evolution 56: 2395–2405.
• Fritsch, P. W. and T. D. McDowell. 2003. Biogeography and phylogeny of Caribbean Plants–Introduction. Systematic Botany 28: 376–377.
• Fritsch, P. W. 2003. Multiple geographic origins of Antillean Styrax. Systematic Botany 28: 421–430.
• Huang, Y. L., P. W. Fritsch, and S. Shi. 2003. A revision of the imbricate group of Styrax series Cyrta (Styracaceae) in Asia. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 90: 491–553.
• Fritsch, P. W. 2003. Styracaceae.  In N. Smith, S. A. Mori, A. Henderson, D. Wm. Stevenson, and S. V. Heald (eds.), Flowering Plants of the Neotropics, pp. 362–363. The New York Botanical Garden and Princeton University Press, Bronx and Princeton.
• Fritsch, P. W. 2003. Revision of 11 taxa of Styracaceae. In: Gamarra Rojas, C.F.L.; Mesquita, A.C. de; Sothers, C.; Mayo, S.J.; Barbosa, M.R.V. (eds.), Checklist das plantas do Nordeste, Centro Nordestino de informações sobre plantas. CNIP, Recife. Internet publication on website: http://www.cnip.org.br.
• Fritsch, P. W. 2004. Styracaceae. In: K. Kubitzki (ed.), The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants, pp. 434–442. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
• Fritsch, P. W. 2004. New species and taxonomic changes in Styrax (Styracaceae) from South America. Novon 14: 43–57.
• Fritsch, P. W., F. Almeda, S. S. Renner, A. B. Martins, and B. C. Cruz. 2004. Phylogeny and circumscription of the near-endemic Brazilian tribe Microlicieae (Melastomataceae). American Journal of Botany 91: 1105–1114.
• Wang, Y., P. W. Fritsch, S. Shi, F. Almeda, B. C. Cruz, and L. M. Kelly. 2004. Phylogeny and infrageneric classification of Symplocos (Symplocaceae) inferred from DNA sequence data. American Journal of Botany 91: 1901–1914.
• Davis, C. C., P. W. Fritsch, C. D. Bell, and S. Mathews. 2004. High latitude Tertiary migrations of an exclusively tropical clade: Evidence from Malpighiaceae. International Journal of Plant Sciences 165 (4 Suppl.): S107–S121.
• Qin, H. N. and P. W. Fritsch. 2005. Clethraceae. In: C. Y. Wu and P. H. Raven (eds.), Flora of China, Volume 14: Apiaceae through Ericaceae, pp. 238–241. Science Press, Beijing and Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis.
• Aranha Filho, J. L. M., P. W. Fritsch, F. Almeda, and A. B. Martins. 2005. Two new species of Symplocos Jacq. (Symplocaceae) from Minas Gerais, Brazil. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 56: 295–303.
• Fritsch, P. W. 2005. A new species of Styrax (Styracaceae) from southern Mexico. Novon 15: 421–424.
• Fritsch, P. W. 2005. Styracaceae. In: T. F. Daniel (ed.), Flora of Chiapas, Part 6, pp. 24–32. California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco.
• Fritsch, P. W. and J. A. Steyermark. 2005. Styracaceae. In: P. E. Berry, K. Yatskievych, and B. K. Holst (eds.), Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana, Volume 9, pp. 283–289. Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis.
• Fritsch, P. W., B. C. Cruz, F. Almeda, Y. Wang, and S. Shi. 2006. Phylogeny of Symplocos based on DNA sequences of the chloroplast trnC-trnD intergenic region. Systematic Botany 31: 181–192.
• Ji, Y. H., P. W. Fritsch, H. Li, T. J. Xiao, and Z. K. Zhou. 2006. Phylogeny and classification of Paris (Melanthiaceae) inferred from DNA sequence data. Annals of Botany 98: 245–256.
• Wang, Y. H., H. He, T. L. Min, L. H. Zhou, and P. W. Fritsch. 2006. The phylogenetic significance of Apterosperma (Theaceae) based on morphological and karyotype characters. Plant Systematics and Evolution 260: 39–52.
• Zhou, L. H., P. W. Fritsch, and B. Bartholomew. 2006. The Symplocaceae of Gaoligong Shan. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences, ser. 4, 57: 387–431.
• Fritsch, P. W. and D. K. Trock. 2007. Lectotypification of Gaultheria pyrolifolia and G. pyroloides (Ericaceae). Journal of the Botanical Research Institute of Texas 1: 97–102.
• Aranha Filho, J. L. M., P. W. Fritsch, F. Almeda, and A. B. Martins. 2007. A revision of Symplocos Jacq. section Neosymplocos Brand (Symplocaceae). Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences, ser. 4, 58: 407–446.
• Fritsch, P. W., F. Almeda, A. B. Martins, B. C. Cruz, and D. E. Estes. 2007. Rediscovery and phylogenetic placement of Philcoxia minensis (Plantaginaceae), with a test of carnivory. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences, ser. 4, 58: 447–467.
• Aranha Filho, J. L. M., P. W. Fritsch, F. Almeda, and A. B. Martins. 2007. Symplocos saxatilis (Symplocaceae), a new dioecious species from Serra do Cipó, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Brittonia 59: 233–237.
• Yao, X. H., Q. G. Ye, P. W. Fritsch, B. C. Cruz, and H. W. Huang. 2008. Phylogeny of Sinojackia (Styracaceae) based on DNA sequence and microsatellite data: implications for taxonomy and conservation. Annals of Botany 101: 651–659.
• Fritsch, P. W., L. H. Zhou, L. Lu, and B. Bartholomew. 2008. The flowering plant genus Gaultheria (Ericaceae) in the Gaoligong Shan, along the border region of China and Myanmar. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences, ser. 4, 59: 147–214. Collaborative project with CAS scientists.
• Fritsch, P. W., L. M. Kelly, Y. Wang, F. Almeda, and R. Kriebel. 2008. Revised infrafamilial classification of Symplocaceae based on phylogenetic data from DNA sequences and morphology. Taxon 57: 823–852.
• Aranha Filho, J. L. M., P. W. Fritsch, F. Almeda, and A. B. Martins. 2009. Cryptic dioecy is widespread in South American species of Symplocos section Barberina (Symplocaceae). Plant Systematics and Evolution 277: 99–104.
• Fritsch, P. W. 2008. Styracaceae. In Zuloaga, F. O., O. Morrone, and M. J. Belgrano (eds.), Catalogue of the Vascular Plants of the Southern Cone (Argentina, Southern Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay), Vol. 3, pp. 3064–3067. Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis.
• Almeda, F., P. W. Fritsch, and J. L. M. Aranha Filho. 2008. Symplocaceae. In Zuloaga, F. O., O. Morrone, and M. J. Belgrano (eds.), Catalogue of the Vascular Plants of the Southern Cone (Argentina, Southern Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay), Vol. 3, pp. 3067–3069. Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis.
• Zhang, M. L., P. W. Fritsch, and B. C. Cruz. 2009. Phylogeny of Caragana (Fabaceae) based on DNA sequence data from rbcL, trnS-trnG, and ITS. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 50: 547–559.
• Aranha Filho, J. L. M., P. W. Fritsch, F. Almeda, and A. B. Martins. 2009. Two new dioecious species of Symplocos (Symplocaceae) from southern Brazil. Novon 19: 1–6.
• Lu, L., H. Wang, P. W. Fritsch, H. T. Li, and D. Z. Li. 2009.  Pollen morphology of Gaultheria L. and related genera of subfamily Vaccinioideae: Taxonomic and evolutionary significance. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 154: 106–123.
• Loeulle, B., P. W. Fritsch, and J. R. Pirani. 2008. Flora da Serra do Cipó, Minas Gerais: Styracaceae. Boletim de Botânica da Universidade de Sâo Paulo 26: 175–182.
• Bush, C. M., L. Lu, P.W. Fritsch, , D.-Z. Li, and K. A. Kron. 2009. Phylogeny of Gaultherieae (Ericaceae: Vaccinioideae) based on DNA sequence data from matK, ndhF, and nrITS. International Journal of Plant Sciences 170: 355–364.
• Aranha Filho, J. L. M., A. B. Martins , P.W. Fritsch, and F. Almeda. 2009. Symplocaceae. In Giulietti, A. M. et al. (eds.), Plantas Raras do Brasil, pp. 381–382. Conservação Internacional, Belo Horizonte.
• Bush, C. M., S. Wagstaff, P.W. Fritsch, and K. A. Kron. 2009. The phylogeny, biogeography and morphological evolution of Gaultheria (Ericaceae) from Australia and New Zealand. Australian Systematic Botany 22: 229–242.
• P.W. Fritsch, A. M. Schiller, and K. W. Larson. 2009. Taxonomic implications of morphological variation in Cercis canadensis (Fabaceae) from Mexico and adjacent parts of Texas. Systematic Botany 34: 510–520.
• P.W. Fritsch, 2009. Styracaceae. In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.), Flora of North America, Volume 8. Magnoliophyta: Paeoniaceae to Ericaceae, pp. 339–347.  Oxford University Press, New York.
• Almeda, F. and P.W. Fritsch, 2009. Symplocaceae. In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.), Flora of North America, Volume 8. Magnoliophyta: Paeoniaceae to Ericaceae, pp. 329–331.  Oxford University Press, New York.
• Aranha Filho, J. L. M., R. Bertoncello, P. W. Fritsch, F. Almeda, and A. B. Martins. 2009. Symplocos atlantica (Symplocaceae), a new species from the Atlantic rain forest of Brazil. Harvard Papers in Botany 14: 101–104.
• Aranha Filho, J. L. M., P. W. Fritsch, F. Almeda, and A. B. Martins. 2009. Validation of the name Symplocos pentandra (Symplocaceae). Journal of the Botanical Research Institute of Texas 3: 659–660.
• Fritsch, P. W. 2009. Styracaceae. In G. Davidse et al. (eds.), Flora Mesoamericana Volume 4(1), pp. 617–620. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México, D. F. Also vailable on-line at http://mobot.mobot.org/Pick/Search/meso.html.
• Lu, L., P. W. Fritsch, C. M. Bush, L.-N. Dong, H. Wang, and D.-Z. Li. 2010. Systematic implications of seed coat diversity in the Gaultherieae (Ericaceae). Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 162: 477–495.
• Fritsch, P.W. 2010. Styracaceae. In: Lista de Espécies da Flora do Brasil. Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro. Available on-line at http://floradobrasil.jbrj.gov.br/2010/FB024928.

In-press:

• Fritsch, P. W. In press. Styracaceae. In P. M. Jørgensen (ed.), Catalogue of Vascular Plants of Bolivia. Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis.
• Fritsch, P. W. In Press. Styracaceae. In R. Callejas and M. Montiel (eds.), Catalogue of the Vascular Plants of the Department of Antioquia, Colombia. Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis.
• Fritsch, P. W. In press. Styracaceae. In B. G. Baldwin et al. (eds.), The Jepson Manual, Higher Plants of California. 2nd Ed. University of California Press, Berkeley, CA.
• Fritsch, P. W. In press. Styracaceae. In R. Bernal (ed.), Catalogue of the plants of Colombia. Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis.
• Bone, R. E., Strijk, J. S., P. W. Fritsch, T. R. Hodkinson, D. Strasberg, C. Thébaud, and S. Waldren. In press. Phylogenetics of the Mascarene endemic genus Badula Juss. and its Malagasy ally, Oncostemum Juss. (Myrsinaceae). Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society.
• Lu, L., P. W. Fritsch, B. C Cruz, H. Wang, and D.-Z. Li. In press. Reticulate evolution, cryptic species, and character convergence in the core East Asian clade of Gaultheria (Ericaceae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution.