Trevor Wilson is a Systematic Botanist within the Plant Discovery and Evolution section of the Australian Institute of Botanical Science. He is based at the National Herbarium of New South Wales at the Australian Botanic Garden Mount Annan. He earned his Ph.D. in Plant Systematics from University of Sydney, a M.Sc. in Botany from University of Guelph in Canada, and Hons. B.Sc. in Biology from University of New Brunswick in Canada.
Trevor’s journey as a biologist has been marked by an insatiable curiosity for the natural world and an unwavering commitment to understanding and conserving biological diversity. His expertise and research portfolio covers various domains, including systematics, evolution, pollination, comparative developmental morphology, phylogenetic reconstruction, genomic sequencing, population statistics and molecular dating. This relies on a multifaceted approach of gathering data and obtaining results from field collections and observations, laboratory work, computer-based analyses, and horticultural experiments.
He possesses a broad understanding on global biota, but many of his research initiatives have been improving our understanding about plants from the Australasian perspective.
Trevor is also recognised as an expert on the mint family (Lamiaceae), one of the largest flowering plant families known for its broad diversity, cosmopolitan distribution, and producer of an enormous number of valuable chemical compounds important to medicine and agriculture. Federal funding from the Australian Biological Resources Study has played a key role assisting Trevor in the last decade with improving understanding of this family’s taxonomy and evolution throughout Australasia.
Trevor’s research efforts have included new species identifications, understanding developmental processes responsible for the evolution of new plant structures, identifying how pollination has evolved, and shedding light on the influence of climate and biogeography on population genetic structure.
One of his favourite research groups, the genus Prostanthera, has been associated with many of these outputs. Prostanthera is the most diverse Australian genus in the Lamiaceae, popular as an ornamental and source of aromatics, and a suitable candidate for understanding more about the ) evolutionary processes and biogeography.
Trevor’s journey as a biologist has been marked by an insatiable curiosity for the natural world and an unwavering commitment to understanding and conserving biological diversity.