Botany

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Trinity College
Dublin 2
Ireland

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Dr. Carla Harper

Dr. Carla Harper

Assistant Professor, Botany

Biography

Carla is a paleobotanist with a specialization in paleomycology, the study of fossil fungi. She has always been fascinated with all things paleontology and has a strong background in illustration, art, and graphic design. During her undergraduate, she completed a double degree at Purdue University in Botany and Plant Breeding and Plant Genetics; her favorite modules were in plant anatomy and plant pathology. In graduate school, combining all of these interests and adding in a passion for mycology, she completed her Ph.D. at the University of Kansas on studying the diversity of Permian and Triassic fungi from Antarctica. After graduate school, she received an Alexander von Humboldt Postdoctoral Research Fellowship to work in Munich, Germany at the Bavarian State Collection for Paleontology and Geology (BSPG) to study fungi from late Paleozoic ecosystems, including the world famous Rhynie chert from Scotland. Carla then had three postdoctoral positions with the US National Science Foundation (NSF) ZyGoLife, NSF Office of Polar Research Antarctica, and the German Research Foundation (DFG) at the BSPG, all focused on studying fossil fungi. Her research has permitted her to conduct fieldwork all over the world, including Antarctica. In March 2020, Carla joined the Trinity College Dublin Botany Department as an Assistant Professor of Environmental Science. She continues her research on the biology and ecology of microorganisms and biotas in Permian (~270 Ma), Triassic (~240 Ma), and Jurassic (~180 Ma) ecosystems of Antarctica and late Paleozoic of Europe (~400 Ma and 330 Ma); symbiotic systems through time, as well as the biology, geochemistry, and evolution of fossil microbes (with an emphasis on interactions, interrelatedness, and nutritional modes). She is also excited to expand her research to study the late Palaeozoic floras of Ireland. In addition, she is keen to document the modern biodiversity of fungi, principally mycorrhizal fungi and tree pathogens, to use as modern analogs to compare to ancient fungi. As co-editor of the book, Transformative Paleobotany, Carla is especially interested in new approaches to studying and visualizing fossil fungi such as analytical techniques, advanced microscopy, and geochemical approaches. She is the most excited at breaking down and understanding complex interactions and pathways between ancient plants and fungi, and how fungi played a role in the early evolution of plants. Combining her passions for art and paleontology, her microscopy imagery (Triarch botanical image award) and research (IW Bailey Award, Isabell Cookson Award) have received international accolades. Carla has won several teaching and mentoring awards, and she is the Inclusive Curriculum champion for the School of Natural Science, a member of the TCD Nature+ as an advocate for research on fungal biodiversity, and a co-editor of the 2021 International Journal of Plant Sciences, all-women first-author, special volume Women in Paleobotany - A Tribute to Edith L. Taylor.

Publications and Further Research Outputs

  • Harper, C.J., Taylor, E.L., Krings, M., Filamentous cyanobacteria preserved in masses of fungal hyphae from the Triassic of Antarctica, Peer J., 8, 2020, pe8660Journal Article, 2020, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Krings, M., Taylor, T.N., Taylor, E.L., Hass, H., Taylor, E.L., Kerp, H., Dotzler, N. and Harper, C.J., Microfossils from the Lower Devonian Rhynie Chert with suggested affinities to the Peronosporomycetes, Journal of Paleontology, 86, (2), 2012, p358 - 367Journal Article, 2012, DOI , TARA - Full Text
  • Harper, C.J., Bomfleur, B., Decombeix, A., Taylor, E.L., Taylor, T.N., and Krings, M., Tylosis formation and fungal interactions in an Early Jurassic conifer from northern Victoria Land, Antarctica, Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 175, 2012, p25 - 31Journal Article, 2012, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Klymiuk, A.A., Harper, C.J., Moore, D.S., Taylor, E.L., Taylor, T.N., and Krings, M., Reinvestigating Carboniferous 'actinomycetes': authigenic formation of biomimetic carbonates and implications for microbial paleoecology, PALAIOS, 28, (2), 2013, p80 - 92Journal Article, 2013, URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Harper, C.J., Taylor, T.N., Krings, M., Taylor, E.L., Mycorrhizal symbiosis in the Paleozoic seed fern Glossopteris from Antarctica., Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 192, 2013, p2 - 31Journal Article, 2013, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Krings, M., White, J.F., Dotzler, N., Harper, C.J. , A Putative fossil zygomycetous fungus with mantled zygosporangia and apposed gametangia from the lower coal measures (Carboniferous) of Great Britain, International Journal of Plant Sciences, 174, (3), 2013, p269 - 277Journal Article, 2013, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Krings, M., Taylor, T.N., Dotzler, N., Harper, C.J., Frankbaronia velata nov. sp., a putative peronosporomycete oogonium containing multiple oospores from the Lower Devonian Rhynie chert, Zitteliana A, 53, 2013, p23 - 30Journal Article, 2013, URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Glauser, A.L., Harper, C.J., Taylor, T.N., Taylor, E.L., Marshall, C.P., Olcott-Marshall, A., Reexamination of cell contents in Pennsylvanian spores and pollen grains using Raman spectroscopy, Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 210, 2014, p62 - 68Journal Article, 2014, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Hieger, T.J., Serbet, R., Harper, C.J., Taylor, T.N., Taylor, E.L., Gulbranson, E.L., Cheirolepidiaceous diversity: an anatomically preserved pollen cone from the Lower Jurassic of southern Victoria Land, Antarctica, Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology , 220, 2015, p78 - 87Journal Article, 2015, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Harper, C.J., Taylor, T.N., Krings, M., Taylor, E.L., Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in a voltzialean conifer from the Triassic of Antarctica, Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 215, 2015, p76 - 84Journal Article, 2015, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Harper, C.J., Taylor, T.N., Krings, M., Taylor, E.L., Fungi associated with Glossopteris (Glossopteridales) leaves from the Permian of Antarctica: A preliminary report., Zitteliana A, 55, 2015, p107 - 114Journal Article, 2015, URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Krings, M., Taylor, T.N., Dotzler, N., Harper, C.J., Morphology and ontogenetic development of Zwergimyces vestitus, a fungal reproductive unit enveloped in a hyphal mantle from the Lower Devonian Rhynie chert., Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 228, 2016, p47 - 56Journal Article, 2016, DOI , URL
  • Harper, C.J., Taylor, T.N., Krings, M., Taylor, E.L., Structurally preserved fungi from Antarctica: Diversity and interactions in late Paleozoic and Mesozoic polar forest ecosystems., Antarctic Science, 28, (3), 2016, p153 - 173Journal Article, 2016, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Harper, C.J., Krings, M., Galtier, J., Taylor, T.N., A microfossil with suggested affinities to the Peronosporomycetes (Oomycota) from the Carboniferous (c. 330 Ma) of France., Nova Hedwigia, 103, (3-4), 2016, p315 - 326Journal Article, 2016, DOI , URL
  • Krings, M., Kerp, H., Taylor, E.L., Harper, C.J., Hagenococcus aggregatus nov. gen. et sp., a microscopic, colony-forming alga from the 410-million-yr.-old Rhynie chert., Nova Hedwigia, 105, (1-2), 2017, p205 - 217Journal Article, 2017, DOI , URL
  • Krings, M., Walker, C., Harper, C.J., Martin, H., Sónyi, S., Kustatscher, E., Taylor, T.N., Unusual fungal reproductive units from the Lower Devonian Rhynie chert., Zitteliana A, 89, 2017, p29 - 37Journal Article, 2017, URL
  • Krings, M., Harper, C.J., White, J.F., Barthel, M., Heinrichs, J., Taylor, E.L., Taylor, T.N., Fungi in a Psaronius root mantle from the Rotliegend (Asselian, lower Permian/Cisuralian) of Thuringia, Germany., Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 239, 2017, p14 - 30Journal Article, 2017, DOI , URL
  • Harper, C.J., Decombeix, A.-L., Taylor, E.L., Taylor, T.N., Krings, M., Fungal decay in Permian glossopteridalean stem and root wood from Antarctica., IAWA Journal, 38, 2017, p29 - 48Journal Article, 2017, DOI , URL
  • Harper, C.J., Krings, M., Dotzler, N., Taylor, E.L., Taylor, T.N., Deciphering interfungal relationships in the 410-million-yr-old Rhynie chert: Morphology and development of vesicle-colonizing microfungi., Geobios, 50, (1-2), 2017, p9 - 22Journal Article, 2017, DOI , URL
  • Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Taylor, E.L., Kerp, H., Early Devonian (~410 Ma) microfossils with an astounding resemblance to Characiopsis (Tribophyceae) and Characium (Chlorophyceae)., Journal of Phycology, 53, 2017, p720 - 724Journal Article, 2017, DOI , URL
  • Krings, M., Harper, C.J., A mantled fungal reproductive unit from the Lower Devonian Windyfield chert, Scotland, with prominent spines and otherwise shaped projections extending out from the mantle., Neues Jahrbuch für Paläontologie und Geologie, 285, 2017, p201 - 211Journal Article, 2017, DOI , URL
  • Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Taylor, E.L., Fungi and fungal interactions in the Rhynie chert: A review of the evidence, with the description of Perexiflasca tayloriana gen. et sp. nov., Philosophical Transactions B. Royal Society of London, 373, (1739), 2017, p20160500Journal Article, 2017, DOI , URL
  • Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Deciphering interfungal relationships in the 410-million-yr-old Rhynie chert: Glomoid spores under attack, Geobios, 51, 2018, p151 - 160Journal Article, 2018, DOI , URL
  • Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Additional observations on the fungal reproductive unit Windipila spinifera from the Windyfield chert, and description of a similar form, Windipila pumila nov. sp., from the nearby Rhynie chert (Lower Devonian, Scotland)., Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie, Abhandlungen, 288, 2018, p235 - 242Journal Article, 2018, URL
  • Harper, C.J., Taylor, E.L., Walker, C., White, J.F., Serbet, R., Krings, M., Fungal sporulation in a Permian plant fragment from Antarctica. Bulletin of Geosciences , Bulletin of Geosciences , 13, (1), 2018, p13 - 26Journal Article, 2018, URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Krings, M., Harper, C.J., A microfossil closely resembling Merismopedia (Cyanobacteria) from the 410-million-yr-old Rhynie and Windyfield cherts: Rhyniococcus uniformis revisited., Nova Hedwigia, 108, (1-2), 2019, p17 - 35Journal Article, 2019, DOI , URL
  • Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Fungal intruders of enigmatic propagule clusters occurring in microbial mats from the Lower Devonian Rhynie chert, PalZ, 93, 2019, p135 - 149Journal Article, 2019, DOI , URL
  • Krings, M., Harper, C.J., A new species of Perexiflasca, enigmatic microfossils with suggested affinities to Chytridiomycota (Fungi) from the Lower Devonian Rhynie and Windyfield cherts, Geobios, 56, 2019, p107 - 114Journal Article, 2019, DOI , URL
  • Harper, C.J., Galtier, J., Taylor, T.N., Taylor, E.L., Rößler, R., Krings, M., Distribution of fungal endophytes in a Triassic fern stem., Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, 108, (4), 2019, p387 - 398Journal Article, 2019, DOI , URL
  • Harper, C.J., Krings, M., Nimbosphaera rothwellii nov. gen. et sp., an enigmatic microfossil enveloped in a prominent sheath from the Lower Devonian Windyfield chert, Scotland, International Journal of Plant Sciences, 180, (6), 2019, p558 - 570Journal Article, 2019, DOI , URL
  • Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Morphological diversity of fungal reproductive units in the Lower Devonian Rhynie and Windyfield cherts, Scotland: A new species of the genus Windipila., PalZ, 94, 2020, p619 - 632Journal Article, 2020, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Decombeix, A.-L., Durieux, T., Harper, C.J., Serbet, R., Taylor, E.L., A Permian nurse log and evidence for facilitation in high-latitude Glossopteris forests., Lethaia, 54, (1), 2020, p96 - 105Journal Article, 2020, DOI , URL
  • Harper, C.J., Walker, C., Schwendemann, A.B., Kerp, H., Krings, M., Archaeosporites rhyniensis gen. et sp. nov. (Glomeromycota, Archaeosporaceae), from the Lower Devonian Rhynie chert - a fungal lineage morphologically unchanged from more than 400 million years., Annals of Botany, 126, (5), 2020, p915 - 928Journal Article, 2020, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Walker, C., Harper, C.J., Brundrett, M., Krings, M., The Early Devonian fungus Mycokidstonia sphaerialoides from the Rhynie chert is a member of the Ambisporaceae (Glomeromycota, Archaeosporales), not an ascomycete., Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 287, 2021, p104384Journal Article, 2021, DOI , URL
  • Krings, M., Serbet, S., Harper, C.J., Rhizophydites matryoshkae gen. et sp. nov. (fossil Chytridiomycota) on spores of the early land plant Horneophyton lignieri from the Lower Devonian Rhynie chert., International Journal of Plant Sciences, 182, (2), 2021, p109 - 122Journal Article, 2021, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Fungi as parasites: A conspectus of the fossil record in, editor(s)De Baets, K., Huntley, J.W. , The Evolution and Fossil Record of Parasitism: Identification and Macroevolution of Parasites. Topics in Geobiology, vol 49., Charm. Switzerland, Springer, 2021, pp69 - 108, [Harper, C.J., Krings, M.]Book Chapter, 2021, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Cúneo, N.R., Rothwell, G.W. , Transformative Paleobotany: Commemorating the life and legacy of Thomas N. Taylor., 1st, London, UK, Elsevier Inc.: Academic Press, 2018, 732ppBook, 2018, URL
  • Enigmatic, structurally preserved stems from the Triassic of central Europe: A fern or not a fern? in, editor(s)Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Cúneo, N.R., Rothwell, G.W. , Transformative Paleobotany: Commemorating the life and legacy of Thomas N. Taylor, London, UK, Elsevier Inc.: Academic Press, 2018, pp187 - 212, [Galtier, J., Harper, C.J., Rößler, R., Kustatscher, E., Krings, M.]Book Chapter, 2018
  • Exceptional preservation of sessile, long-stalked microorganisms in the Lower Devonian Windyfield chert (Scotland). in, editor(s)Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Cúneo, N.R., Rothwell, G.W. , Transformative Paleobotany: Commemorating the life and legacy of Thomas N. Taylor, London, UK, Elsevier Inc.: Academic Press, 2018, pp519 - 526, [Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Kerp, H., Taylor, E.L.]Book Chapter, 2018
  • Looking for arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) in the fossil record - an illustrated guide. in, editor(s)Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Cúneo, N.R., Rothwell, G.W. , Transformative Paleobotany: Commemorating the life and legacy of Thomas N. Taylor, London, UK, Elsevier Inc.: Academic Press, 2018, pp481 - 518, [Walker, C., Harper, C.J., Brundrett, M.C., Krings, M.]Book Chapter, 2018
  • Fossils of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi give insights into the history of a successful partnership with plants. in, editor(s)Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Cúneo, N.R., Rothwell, G.W. , Transformative Paleobotany: Commemorating the life and legacy of Thomas N. Taylor, London, UK, Elsevier Inc.: Academic Press, 2018, pp461 - 480, [Brundrett, M.C., Walker, C., Harper, C.J., Krings, M.]Book Chapter, 2018
  • Reactive Oxygen Defense Against Cellular Endoparasites and the Origin of Eukaryotes. in, editor(s)Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Cúneo, N.R., Rothwell, G.W. , Transformative Paleobotany: Commemorating the life and legacy of Thomas N. Taylor, London, UK, Elsevier Inc.: Academic Press, 2018, pp439 - 460, [White, J.F., Kingsley, K., Harper, C.J., Verma, S.K., Brindisi, L., Chen, Q., Chang, X., Micci, A.,Bergen, M.]Book Chapter, 2018
  • Early fungi: Evidence from the fossil record in, editor(s)Dighton, J., White, J.F. , The Fungal Community: Its Organization and Role in the Ecosystem (Fourth Edition), Boca Raton, FL, CRC Press, 2017, pp37 - 52, [Krings, M., Taylor, T.N., Harper, C.J.]Book Chapter, 2017, DOI , URL
  • Decombeix, A.L., Harper, C.J., Galtier, J., Meyer-Berthaud B., Krings M., Tyloses in fossil plants: New data from an early Carboniferous tree, with a review of previous records, Botany Letters , 168, 2022, p510 - 526Journal Article, 2022
  • Toumoulin, A., Decombeix, A.L., Harper, C.J., Serbet, R., Early Jurassic silicified woods from Carapace Nunatak, South Victoria Land, Antarctica, Fossil Record, 26, (1), 2023, p103 - 115Journal Article, 2023
  • Decombeix, A.L., Harper, C.J., Prestianni, C., Durieux, T., Ramel, M. Krings, M., Oldest fossil evidence of tylosis formation in plants., Nature Plants, 9, 2023, p695 - 698Journal Article, 2023
  • Krings, M., Harper, C.J., A fungal mycelium containing abundant endoconidia from the Lower Devonian Rhynie chert of Scotland., Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 313, 2023, p104891-Journal Article, 2023
  • Durieux, T., Decombeix, A.-L., Harper, C.J., Galtier, J., Re-investigation of Stauroxylon beckii, a possible aneurophytalean progymnosperm from the Mississippian of France., International Journal of Plant Sciences, 2023Journal Article, 2023
  • Harper, C.J., Fossil Fungi, Review of Fossil Fungi, by Taylor, T.N., Krings, M., , Ameghiniana, 53, (2), 2016, p238-240Review, URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Rothwell, G.W., Krings, M., Harper, C.J., Thomas N. Taylor - Pioneering palaeomycologist (1937-2016), IMA Fungus , 8, 2017, p59 - 60Journal Article, URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Ryberg, P.E., Harper, C.J., Decombeix, A.L. , Celebrating women in paleobotany: A tribute to Edith L. Taylor, International Journal of Plant Sciences, 186, (6), 2021, p000 - 000Journal Article, DOI , URL , TARA - Full Text
  • Bea Jackson, Thesis Chapter 2 - stomatal measurements CO2 dataset , TCD masters thesis, 2023Dataset, TARA - Full Text
  • Bea Jackson, Tcd masters Thesis chapter 3 and 4 data, tcd thesis , 2023Dataset
  • Bea Jackson, Data for chapter 3 and 4 of masters thesis, Tcd thesis dataset, 2023Dataset, TARA - Full Text

Research Expertise

Environmental geoscience, Microbiology, Environmental management,

Recognition

  • University of Kansas Undergraduate Research Mentor Award. (University-wide award). 2015
  • Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellowship for Postdoctoral Researchers (3.1-USA/1160852 STP) 2015-2017
  • Isabell Cookson Award. Paleobotany Section Botanical Society of America - Best student oral presentation. 2015
  • I.W. Bailey Award. Award for best manuscript submitted to the IAWA (International Association for Wood Anatomists) Journal by an early career wood anatomist. 2016
  • Sally K. Frost Mason and Kenneth A. Mason Award for Excellence in Teaching Undergraduate Biology Core Laboratory (Student Nominated Award). 2013
  • Kenneth B. Armitage Award for Excellence in Teaching, Principles of Biology Laboratory (Student Nominated Award). 2014
  • Fossil des Monats [Fossil of the month]. Rätselhaftes Farnstämmchen [Enigmatic fern stem]. Study and specimen were selected as fossil of the month exhibit in BSPG, Munich, Germany. 2018
  • University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum Research Associate present
  • Botanical Society of America - Paleobotany Section present
  • Bayerische Staatssammlung für Paläontologie und Geologie Museum Research Associate present
  • British Mycological Society present