Prof. Dr. Elena Conti

My research revolves around the following fundamental questions in evolutionary biology: How is biological diversity partitioned at different temporal, spatial, and genomic scales? What are the processes that generate and eliminate biological diversity? How do geography, ecology, and genomes shape the evolution of biological diversity? I strive to address the complexity of these questions by integrating evidence at different evolutionary scales and using a variety of methodological approaches, ranging from phylogenomics and biogeography to population genomics and phylogeography, from comparative genomics to reproductive biology and morphometrics, pollination and field experiments, and incorporating demographic, ecological, and evolutionary modeling. Within the framework of the overarching questions outlined above, I pursue two main lines of research that intersect with each other at several conceptual and methodological levels: 1) Evolutionary biology of heterostyly and primroses (Primula L., Primulaceae); 2) Biogeography in the Mediterranean realm, with emphasis on the origin of plants endemic to oceanic and continental islands. See current projects of members of Conti’s lab