Kyra Prats: Plant Physiology First Author

Kyra Prats, first author of “Desiccation and rehydration dynamics in the epiphytic resurrection fern Pleopeltis polypodioides“

Current Position: Ph.D. Candidate at Yale University, School of the Environment

Education: M.S. in Forest Science from Yale University, B.S. in Environmental Geoscience from Boston College

Non-scientific Interests: Dancing, hiking, and crocheting

Brief bio: Broadly speaking, I am interested in understanding fern ecophysiology under environmental stressors, such as desiccation or freezing temperatures. Ferns can serve as crucial bio-indicators of drought and climate change in many ecosystems. Better understanding their ecophysiology can provide insight into how they cope with changing climates. I am currently a Ph.D. candidate at Yale working with Craig Brodersen, and I am a joint graduate student with the New York Botanical Garden. In my dissertation work, I use a variety of methods—from gas exchange and hydraulics, to microCT and epi-illumination fluorescence microscopy—to explore multiple facets of fern ecophysiology.