Research Highlight - SGI Alumnus Thomas Murphy earns an Early Career Award

The Southeastern Grasslands Institute would like to congratulate former SGI researcher and Estes Lab Master’s student, Thomas Murphy, Ph.D., on being the inaugural recipient of the American Society of Plant Taxonomists 2025 Elizabeth A. Zimmer Early Career Publication Award. The early career paper for which Thomas was selected for this award is Morphometric and Molecular Evidence Delimit Six Species in Clematis reticulata s.l. (Ranunculaceae: Clematis subg. Viorna). Murphy’s work for this paper was done while at APSU as an Estes Lab member and SGI affiliate researcher. SGI’s Zach Irick was an important collaborator on this work, as was Jesse Harris whose molecular work on the project was funded through UC Boulder. SGI is grateful for the funding for this project provided by the Mt. Cuba Center in Delaware. Read more about the award and check out the American Society of Plant Taxonomists by clicking here. 

Thomas is set to graduate with his Ph.D. in botany from the University of Florida this fall. His Ph.D. work was with Dr. Lucas Majure, and focused on systematic botany, phylogenetics, and genomics on the genus Smilax species in South America. So far, Thomas has published two papers from his dissertation:

• A New Endemic Smilax (Smilacaceae) from Tafelberg, Suriname, Supported by Morphometric and Phylogenetic Evidence

• A New Endemic Species from the Guiana Shield, Smilax brevipedunculata (Smilacaceae)

Thomas will begin a postdoctoral position this fall in Miami, FL at the International Institute of Tropical Botany. Here , he will be able to continue using his expertise in biodiversity-based and collections-based taxonomic research.

Congratulations again to our SGI alumnus!

Getting to Know Us: Chris Oberholster

Chris Oberholster is SGI’s newest addition to our Leadership Team as our Director of Philanthropy. Chris has a BS in Grassland Science from the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, which is the equivalent of a Range Science/Management degree here in the U.S. He then earned a Master’s in Agronomy at Auburn University (yes, he really studied cows at a “cow college”!) Chris began a PhD in Ecology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where he studied under Dr. Ed Clebsch, but he did not complete those studies as he had an opportunity to return to Alabama to work for The Nature Conservancy as a Community Ecologist at the Alabama Natural Heritage Program. Scroll down to learn more about Chris!

Q: Were you always interested in nature & the outdoors, and how did you get interested in grassland ecosystems?

My love for grasslands developed early in life as I grew up surrounded by the diverse mountain grasslands of eastern South Africa. My interest in grasslands grew out of my childhood interest in birdwatching, followed by a growing interest in identifying the rich flora in the grasslands and forests of the local 2,000 acre Vryheid Hill Nature Preserve, where I would explore with my family and friends. My academic training then built on that early interest.

A photo of rugged, mountainous eastern South African grasslands of Chris’s childhood.

Q: What did you do prior to coming to SGI?

I have been involved in biodiversity conservation in a variety of roles, including plant and habitat surveys, stewardship of lands including prescribed burning, lobbying at the state and federal levels, and fundraising. Most recently I was the Director of External Affairs for The Nature Conservancy in Alabama, where I advocated for conservation policy and funding in the Alabama Legislature and U.S. Congress. Prior to that I was the Development Director for Alabama Audubon.

What is your role within SGI?

As Director of Philanthropy for SGI, my role is to facilitate private funding support for the SGI mission from individuals, foundations and corporations.

What are you most excited about when it comes to working with SGI?

The challenge of securing the financial resources to protect and restore Southern grasslands at the massive scale needed to match the urgency that is necessary.

What are some of your hobbies?

Some are perhaps obvious since they are nature-connected, like birding and growing native plants. I also enjoy deer hunting and making my own biltong, the South African style jerky, and stamp collecting. 

Anything else you want to share with us?

After having experienced some of the formidable challenges facing those who try to conserve the natural world, I want to express my deepest gratitude to all people, whether nonprofit or government agency staff, volunteers, board members, donors, and decisionmakers, who help to protect and restore biodiversity anywhere on the Earth. And a special thanks to my family in the US and across the world for also appreciating nature.

Blog prepared by Dr. Eleanor Lopez, SGI Communications Specialist.

Genus of the Month - Cirsium

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Member of the plume thistle genus Cirsium, Cirsium altissimum. Copyright chia CC BY-NC 4.0

The Southeastern Grasslands Institute presents Genus of the Month: Cirsium, the plume thistles

The genus Cirsium is a group of important native grassland plants in the larger plant group Asteraceae, or the sunflower family. The Flora of the Southeastern United States lists 20 species of Cirsium you may come across in our region. Of these, 17 are native to the United States, and 3 are non-native and considered invasive.  Because of the feathery structures on their achenes (a type of single-seeded fruit), species in the genus Cirsium are commonly called plume thistles.

Benefits of Cirsium

• Pollinators - thistles in the genus Cirsium produce nectar that attracts and supports many pollinator species, including bees, butterflies, moths, wasps, and hummingbirds.

• Wildlife Food Source- Seeds produced by Cirsium species provide food for birds, as well as soft, fluffy material (called pappus) that birds use to line and insulate their nests.

Identifying Characteristics of Cirsium

Please find a key to the genus Cirsium linked here. Below are some defining characteristics of the genus.

• Composite Flowers - Like other members of the Asteraceae family, what may look like an individual Cirsium flower is actually a complex inflorescence. A single flowering head is made up of numerous small, individual flowers, or florets, and an involucre, which is the cup-like ring of leafy bracts at the base. These bracts, which are also known as phyllaries, are important to pay close attention to when identifying Cirsium species; some have spine-tipped phyllaries, while others are smooth. (Fig 1)

Fig. 1 Cirsium altissimum, tall thistle, with arrows and brackets highlighting morphological characteristics of Cirsium species, including decurrent leaf tissue, flower head, phyllaries, florets, and the involucre.

Selected Native Cirsium Species

• Cirsium altissimum (tall thistle)

  • Habitat: pastures, woodlands, thickets

    • Images by aggie_wildlifer (CC0)

• Cirsium discolor (field thistle)

  • Habitat: pastures, woodlands, thickets

    • Images by casey_harless (CC0)

• Cirsium muticum (swamp thistle)

  • Habitat: swamps, wet thickets, woodlands, seepage slopes, wet prairies, meadows

    • Images by whiteoak (CC0)

Invasive Cirsium Species in the SGI Focal Area

• Cirsium vulgare (bull thistle)

  •  Native to Europe

  • Identifiable by leaves with bases that extend down the length of the stem (decurrent leaves), forming a spiny wing

    • Images by andreakautz(CC0) and philmaynard (CC0)

• Cirsium arvense (Canada thistle)

  • Native to Eurasia

  • Identifiable by creeping rhizomes, which allow it to form large, dense colonies 

  • No spines on the phyllaries 

  • Only perennial Cirsium species in our region (all others are biennial).

    • Images by bagli (CC0) and letiziaw (CC0)

Blog by SGI Staff; based on work by Alaina Krakowiack, SGI Central Appalachian Grasslands Coordinator/Ecologist; blog prepared by Dr. Eleanor Lopez, SGI Communications Specialist.