Associate Professor
Email: timo.vanderniet@uct.ac.za
Phone: 021 650 XXXX
Room 3.xx, HW Pearson
Research interests: I am fascinated by the tremendous diversity and species richness of plants and my research aims at understanding the evolution of both these phenomena, using the South African flora as a model system. I specifically focus on the role of pollinators in driving diversity in flowers, and whether and how this leads to the origin of new plant species. I study this at various levels, starting from the divergence of populations of the same species, culminating into adaptive radiation of entire lineages. Although my original research revolved around the largely African orchid genus Satyrium, I have studied these processes in a range of different plant groups, including the mega genus Erica, Pelargonium, and Guthriea. Research in my group implements a range of complementary methods, which together can result in powerful insight, but the starting point is to describe the natural history and ecology of taxa. In combination with past and current research of systematics, I then implement comparative trait analyses with ecological experiments to test for the evolution of novel functional traits. I specifically focus on flower morphology and scent chemistry. Explaining the evolutionary origin of diversity also requires insight into the mechanisms by which different species can coexist. Together with colleagues, we have proposed to apply fundamental ecological principles of niche theory to community-level pollination processes. I consider this as an important complementary angle to explain South African plant diversity. Finally, I also fundamental research to solve applied problems related to pollination ecology and plant evolution.
If you are enthusiastic about plant diversity, you are welcome to contact me to discuss potential projects or collaborations.
Key papers:
Van der Niet, T., Egan, P.A., Schluter, P.M. 2023. Evolutionarily inspired solutions to the crop pollination crisis. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 38: 435-445. DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2022.12.010
Ruchisansakun, S., Mertens, A., Janssens, S.B., Smets, E.F., Van der Niet, T. 2021. Evolution of pollination syndromes and corolla symmetry in Balsaminaceae reconstructed using phylogenetic comparative analyses. Annals of Botany 127: 267-280. DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcaa184
Castañeda-Zárate, M., Johnson, S.D., Van der Niet, T. 2021. Food reward chemistry explains a novel pollinator shift and vestigialization of long floral spurs in an orchid. Current Biology 31: 238-246. DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.10.024
Van der Niet, T. 2021. Paucity of natural history data impedes phylogenetic analyses of pollinator-driven evolution. New Phytologist 229: 1201-1205. DOI: 10.1111/nph.16813
Phillips, R.D., Peakall, R., Van der Niet, T., Johnson, S.D. 2020. Niche perspectives on plant-pollinator interactions. Trends in Plant Science 25: 779-793. DOI: 10.1016/j.tplants.2020.03.009
Cozien, R.J., Van der Niet, T., Johnson, S.D., Steenhuisen S. 2019. Saurian surprise: lizards pollinate South Africa’s engimatic hidden flower. Ecology 100. DOI: 10.1002/ecy.2670
Bouman, R.W., Steenhuisen, S., Van der Niet, T. 2017. The role of the pollination niche in community assembly of Erica species in a biodiversity hotspot. Journal of Plant Ecology 10: 634-648. DOI: 10.1093/jpe/rtw068