Plant Biology Lab
at William Jewell
Dr. Nathan A. Jud
Department of Biology
William Jewell College
Welcome
We study living and fossil plants to understand the history of plant evolution and ecology. Our focus is paleobotany because the fossil record is a rich source of data on the morphology, anatomy, distribution, and associations of extinct plants. These data can be used to test a variety hypotheses in ecology and evolution.
Research projects are available for undergraduate students on a range of topics in organismal botany, paleontology, and (paleo)ecology.
​
Stephania psittaca (Menispermaceae) fruit from the early Paleocene of Patagonia
This specimen of Fairlingtonia shows the adventitious roots and the slender young stem (Jud 2015).
Transverse section of Todea tidwellii showing the dark sclerenchymatous pith (Jud et al 2008).
Transverse section of a Parinari endocarp (pit) from the lower Miocene of Panama. Scale bar = 1cm (Jud et al 2016)
This is a fossil Ficus wood from the Cenozoic of Panama (Jud and Dunham, forthcoming)