When: Thursday 17 May, 7.30 pm
Where: Seniors Village Hub, North Room.
Topic: What’s in a name? Orchid Taxonomy: a gentle introduction.
Speaker: Dr Heidi Zimmer, Research Scientist (Botany)
Orchid Research Program, CSIRO and OFNCS member.
If you are interested in orchids you will have noticed changes to some of their species names in recent years. Heidi will give an overview of taxonomy (science of classification) and nomenclature (naming). She’ll cover basic principles and guiding rules in each of these disciplines, and how these influence the orchid species we know today. The talk highlights the evolution of the taxonomic method, with beginnings in morphology (what things look like) to increasing emphasis on the use of molecular analysis (studies involving DNA). Using a bunch of fun orchid-based case studies, we’ll discuss why orchid names change, and how to identify ‘new species’. All of this science is important as it helps assesses whether a species should be added to the list of threatened species. Heidi has a role in assessing species at an international level as the Regional Coordinator (Australasia) of the IUCN Orchid Red List Authority.
