Alina Freire-Fierro

HI! I am an Ecuadorian botanist who have been interested in plants and since early on. My father used to take me and my siblings for hikes in the mountains nearby Banios de Agua Santa, my hometown. I loved and cherished those activities! I have been working in the plant genus Monnina since I was an undergraduate. The genus has more than 400 names and the species grow from Southern USA to Chile and Uruguay. This genus is widely distributed, and has an important ecological role due to presence of extra-floral nectaries, fleshy fruits, zygomorphic flowers with secondary pollen presentation, cleistogamy, and roots with methyl salicilate. Now I am working on the phylogeny of the group using DNA, and after I finish my dissertation, I would like to do the taxonomic revision of the whole genus, starting subgroup by subgroup. Since I need to be in shape for my collecting field trips, I train martial arts (Shindo Muso Ryu, Krav Maga, and Kickboxig!).

October 2013