I am an Evolutionary Biologist and PhD Student working at the intersection of genomics, biogeography, and tropical botany. My current project integrates plant population genomics, phylogeography and dendrochronology within the interdisciplinary framework of the PacificPeopleForest Horizon Europe Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Doctoral Network, which aims to explore the history, archaeology, and botany of the Mariana Islands in the Western Pacific.
Keywords
Evolutionary Biology · Population Genomics · Phylogenomics · Biogeography · Phylogeography · Dendrochronology · Interdisciplinary Research · Tropical Botany
Research interests
I am fascinated by how genomic data can uncover the hidden evolutionary and biogeographical histories of plant species written across centuries, millennia and millions of years.
As genomic variation accumulates across generations and through shallow and deep evolutionary time, DNA preserves traces of diversification, migration, adaptation, and demographic changes. My current research explores how genomic data can help reconstruct past human-mediated plant dispersal and landscape transformation in the Mariana Islands, investigating how successive waves of human migration and colonial exchange reshaped Pacific Island ecosystems. Furthermore, the dendrochronological potential of tropical tree species will be assessed to evaluate their suitability for dating archaeological remains.
PhD Project Framework
Further details on the PacificPeopleForest project and ongoing research activities will be added soon. Check the official website in the meantime.
PhD Supervisors
Publications
- Žerdoner, A., Susca, F., Krak, K., Mandák, B. & Kadereit, G. Tracing Sticky Trails: The Historical Biogeography of Australia’s Glandular Goose-foots (Dysphania, Chenopodioideae, Amaranthaceae). bioRxiv preprint (2026) doi: https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.06.01.728730. Submitted in Journal of Biogeography;