Research

Current Research Areas

Research staff in the Department of Botany study plant systematics and floristics of plant communities across the globe.  Both modern and fossil species of many plant groups, including algae, mosses, ferns and flowering plants, are currently being studied. Smithsonian botanists conduct field studies in many parts of the United States and around the world.

Geographic

Guiana Shield

Hawaiian Islands

Marquesas Islands

Micronesia

Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands

Washington-Baltimore Area

West Indies

Specialities

DNA Barcode Project

Lianas and Climbing Plants of the Neotropics

Taxonomic

Algae

Dinoflagellates

Onagraceae Research

Zingiberales