Profile

I am interested in the systematics of the mahogany family (Meliaceae) and the exploration of an integrative taxonomic understanding of biodiversity in general. My current PhD project focuses on Toona, a small genus of trees distributed from East Pakistan to East Australia. They are highly valued for their timber and various other usages, such as traditional medicine. Currently, the taxonomy of the genus is disputed, with no scientific consensus on the number and the delimitation of the species within Toona. This lack of knowledge hinders conservation efforts, a critical circumstance under the overarching threat of deforestation in Southeast Asia . I apply various approaches to resolve this issue, such as phylogenomic, metabolomic and morphological analyses, building up to a larger framework of an integrative taxonomic revision.