Staff
Chris Cleal: Head of Vegetation History Section & Lower Plants
Expertise and interests
Has produced over seventy books and research papers. British delegate of the European Association for the Conservation of the Geological Heritage, and secretary of the British Institute for Geological Conservation. Corresponding member of the IUGS Subcommission on Carboniferous Stratigraphy. Expertise: Late Palaeozoic palaeobotany, including gymnosperm taxonomy, cuticle studies, floristics and biostratigraphy.
Current projects
- The relationship between Late Carboniferous tropical forests, atmospheric CO2 and global climatic warming.
- Adaptation of Late Carboniferous plants to tropical habitats.
- Late Carboniferous floras of Radstock (UK), Silesia (Poland), Svoge (Bulgaria), Shanxi (China) and Cape Breton (Canada).
- Developing an inventory of the major palaeobotanical sites in the world (part of the Geosites Project for IUGS and UNESCO)
Tel: +44 (0)29 2057-3310
E-mail Chris Cleal
Heather Pardoe: Curator (Quaternary Palynology)
Expertise and interests
Curator for a number of small collections. Main area of research is in pollen deposition in arctic-alpine environments. Further area of interest has developed in the vegetation history of Wales.
Current projects
Co-ordinator for the Nuffield Science Bursary Scheme. One of two British co-ordinators of the European Pollen Monitoring Programme which studies the rates of pollen deposition at treelines.
Tel: +44 (0)29 2057-3294
Maureen Lazarus: Curator (Botanical Illustration) & Outreach Liaison Officer
Expertise and interests
Joined the Conservation Project assisting the department conservator in conserving, re-housing and documenting the botanical illustrative collections. Main research area lies in botanical illustration while main purpose is to maximise the profile of the collection and of the Department as a whole.
Tel: +44 (0)29 2057-3309
Helen Fraser: Curator (Botanical Photography) & Librarian.
Expertise and interests
Responsible for the BioSyB Library and the botanical photographic slide collection. Shared responsibility for the botanical archives. Collator for the biennial publication of the 'Bibliography of European Palaeobotany & Palynology' and for the departmental magazine 'Symbiont'. Assists in an administrative capacity with publications in the Vegetation History Section.
Tel: +44 (0)29 2057-3344
More information on current projects in Vegetation History is available.
