Selena Smith

Appointment: 2010 to 2013
Geological Sciences

I am broadly interested in the evolution of plants and terrestrial ecosystems. To date I have focused on fossils from the Cretaceous and Paleogene periods (145.5 to 23.0 million years ago). My primary research interest is a group of angiosperms (flowering plants) called monocots, which include ecologically and economically important species like grasses (cereals and grains), sedges, palms, orchids, lilies, bananas, gingers, seagrasses, and pondweeds. Most angiosperm paleobotany focuses on non-monocot flowering plants, which are more abundant and more readily preserved compared to monocots; decades of research have also shown what anatomical features correlate with environment to allow reconstruction of past climate. Monocots, especially tropical species, also have potential for use in paleoenvironmental reconstructions, but still need to be studied quantitatively. Understanding when and where monocots evolved, and how and why they have responded to past environmental change is also important for understanding past ecosystems and the future impacts of anthropogenic climate change. I received my Ph.D. in Systematics & Evolution from the University of Alberta in 2007, and completed a postdoc at Royal Holloway, University of London. I teach in the Department of Geological Sciences.