Lab Members : Brendan Hodkinson

Department of Biology
Box 90338
Duke University
Durham, NC 27708

Cell: 443-340-0917
Work: 919-660-7285
Fax: 919-660-7293

'Squamules' Blog

Research Interests
Microbial Ecology and Evolution: The Lichen as a Microcosm
As a member of the Lutzoni lab, I am researching various aspects of the non-photobiont bacterial consortia associated with diverse lichens. There is an ever-increasing body of evidence suggesting that lichens exist not simply as dual partnerships, but as microcosms comprised of diverse assemblages of specific microbial lineages. Through my research I have detected an undescribed lineage of bacteria ('LAR1') that has been found almost exclusively in association with lichens. As part of this research I am continuing to develop tools (e.g., primers, protocols, and techniques) that can be widely applied to the study of microbial ecology and evolution in environmental settings.

Lichen Systematics
To better understand the evolution of morphological and molecular diversity, I study the phylogeny of specific lichen-forming fungal lineages using model-based inferences in concert with traditional analytical methods. This work has led to the description or redefinition of numerous taxa and has provided insight into which outward characteristics are best for revealing evolutionary relationships. Since much remains to be discovered about the diversity of lichenized fungi and the distributional patterns of individual species, systematic regional inventories are still crucial for the advancement of the field. To address this need, I have conducted several lichen inventories, including an ongoing project that has resulted in the first checklist of lichens and lichenicolous fungi for Virginia, USA, containing over 600 taxa.

Education
BS Biology with Honors, College of William and Mary, 2005
Thesis: The lichen flora of the Williamsburg, Virginia, area

Fellowships & Grants
NSF Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant, 2010-
MSA Graduate Fellowship, 2009 [Inoculum Excerpt]
Christiane and Christopher Tyson OTS Research Fellowship, 2008-2009
Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research Grant, 2008-2009
Sally Hughes-Schrader Travel Grant, 2008-2009
Sigma Xi Grant-In-Aid of Research, 2007
James B. Duke Fellowship for Graduate Study, 2005-2009
NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, 2005-2008
James Monroe Scholarship, 2004
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Student Research Grant, 2003-2004

Honors, Prizes, & Awards
Explorers Club Diversa Awards, 2007-2009 [Reports: 1 & 2]
MSA Student Presentation Award, 2008 (MSA best student conference paper)
A. J. Sharp Award, 2007 (ABLS best student conference paper)
Duke Graduate International Research Travel Award, 2007
Adkins Arboretum Botanical Research Award, 2006
Berkeley Fellowship for Graduate Study, 2005 (declined)
Charlotte Preston Mangum Prize, 2005 (best undergraduate Honors research)
Baldwin-Speece Plant Conservation Award, 2005

Peer-Reviewed Publications

2010

Hodkinson, B. P. 2010. A First Assessment of Lichen Diversity for One of North America's 'Biodiversity Hotspots' in the Southern Appalachians of Virginia. Castanea 75(1): 126-133.
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Hodkinson, B. P., and J. C. Lendemer. 2010. Molecular analyses reveal semi-cryptic species in Xanthoparmelia tasmanica. Bibliotheca Lichenologica: in press.
Download draft (PDF file)
Download alignment (NEXUS file)

Hodkinson, B. P., J. C. Lendemer, and T. L. Esslinger. 2010. Parmelia barrenoae, a macrolichen new to North America and Africa. North American Fungi 5(3): 1-5.
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Lendemer, J. C., and B. P. Hodkinson. 2010. A new perspective on Punctelia subrudecta in North America: previously-rejected morphological characters corroborate molecular phylogenetic evidence and provide insight into an old problem. Lichenologist 42(4): 405-421.
Download publication (PDF file)
Download alignment (NEXUS file)

2009

Hodkinson, B. P., and F. Lutzoni. 2009. A microbiotic survey of lichen-associated bacteria reveals a new lineage from the Rhizobiales. Symbiosis 49(3): 163-180.
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Download alignment (NEXUS file)

Hodkinson, B. P., R. C. Harris, and M. A. Case. 2009. A Checklist of Virginia Lichens. Evansia 26(2): 64-88.
Download publication (PDF file)
View authors' updated checklist (website)

Lendemer, J. C., and B. P. Hodkinson. 2009. The Wisdom of Fools: new molecular and morphological insights into the North American apodetiate species of Cladonia. Opuscula Philolichenum 7: 79-100.
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Download alignment (NEXUS file)

Lendemer, J. C., and B. P. Hodkinson. 2009a. Stretching the boundaries: A range extension for Buellia wheeleri R.C. Harris. Evansia 26(4): 172-176.
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View dynamic range map (google map)

Schoch, C. L., G.-H. Sung, F. López-Giráldez, J. P. Townsend, J. Miadlikowska, V. Hofstetter, B. Robbertse, P. B. Matheny, F. Kauff, Z. Wang, C. Gueidan, R. M. Andrie, K. Trippe, L. M. Ciufetti, A. Wynns, E. Fraker, B. P. Hodkinson, G. Bonito, R. Yahr, J. Z. Groenewald, M. Arzanlou, G. S. de Hoog, P. W. Crous, D. Hewitt, D. H. Pfister, K. Peterson, M. Gryzenhout, M. J. Wingfield, A. Aptroot, S.-O. Suh, M. Blackwell, D. M. Hillis, G. W. Griffith, L. A. Castlebury, A. Y. Rossman, H. T. Lumbsch, R. Lücking, B. Büdel, A. Rauhut, P. Diederich, D. Ertz, D. M. Geiser, K. Hosaka, P. Inderbitzin, J. Kohlmeyer, B. Volkmann-Kohlmeyer, L. Mostert, K. O’Donnell, H. Sipman, J. D. Rogers, R. A. Shoemaker, J. Sugiyama, R. C. Summerbell, W. Untereiner, P. Johnston, S. Stenroos, A. Zuccaro, P. Dyer, P. Crittenden, M. S. Cole, K. Hansen, J. M. Trappe, F. Lutzoni, and J. W. Spatafora. 2009. The Ascomycota Tree of Life: A Phylum Wide Phylogeny Clarifies the Origin and Evolution of Fundamental Reproductive and Ecological Traits. Systematic Biology 58(2): 224-239.
Download publication (PDF file)
Download supplementary phylogenies (PDF file)
Download alignment (zipped NEXUS file)
Download character states table (PDF file)
Download sequence data table (PDF file)

2008 & earlier

Hodkinson, B. P., and M. A. Case. 2008. A lichen survey of Williamsburg, Virginia. Banisteria 31: 24-30.
Download publication (PDF file)
Download supplement (Excel file)

Miadlikowska, J., F. Kauff, V. Hofstetter, E. Fraker, M. Grube, J. Hafellner, V. Reeb, B. P. Hodkinson, M. Kukwa, R. Lücking, G. Hestmark, M. Garcia Otalora, A. Rauhut, B. Büdel, C. Scheidegger, E. Timdal, S. Stenroos, I. Brodo, G. Perlmutter, D. Ertz, P. Diederich, J. C. Lendemer, P. May, C. L. Schoch, A. E. Arnold, C. Gueidan, E. Tripp, R. Yahr, C. Robertson, and F. Lutzoni. 2006. New insights into classification and evolution of the Lecanoromycetes (Pezizomycotina, Ascomycota) from phylogenetic analyses of three ribosomal RNA- and two protein-coding genes. Mycologia 98(6): 1088-1103.
Download publication (PDF file)
Download supplement (PDF file)
Download alignment (zipped NEXUS file)

McCormick, M. K., D. F. Whigham, D. Sloan, K. O'Malley, and B.[P.]Hodkinson. 2006. Orchid-fungus fidelity: a marriage meant to last? Ecology 87(4): 903-911.
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Download supplement (PDF file)

Swaddle, J. P., M. G. Cathey, M. Correll, and B. P. Hodkinson. 2005. Socially transmitted mate preferences in a monogamous bird: a non-genetic mechanism of sexual selection. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences 272(1567): 1053-1058.
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Selected Additional Works
Hodkinson, B. P., and F. Lutzoni. 2010. Do lichens harbor their own 'rhizobia'? A large-scale phylogenetic survey of lichen-associated bacteria from the order Rhizobiales. Botany 2010, abs. 347.
View abstract (website)

Lendemer, J. C., R. C. Harris, and B. P. Hodkinson. 2010. Connecting the dots: progress and problems in assessing lichen biodiversity and biogeography in the coastal plain of southeastern North America. Botany 2010, abs. 30.
View abstract (website)

Hodkinson, B. P., and J. C. Lendemer. 2010. How do you solve a problem like Xanthoparmelia? Molecular analyses reveal semi-cryptic species in an Australasian-American 'disjunct' taxon. Botany 2010, abs. 355.
View abstract (website)

Lendemer, J. C., B. P. Hodkinson, and M. Piercey-Normore. 2010. Cladonia Systematics: What can we infer from morphology and molecules? Botany 2010, abs. 1052.
View abstract (website)

Lücking, R., B. P. Hodkinson, A. Stamatakis, and R. A. Cartwright. In revision. PICS-Ord: Unlimited Coding of Ambiguous Regions by Pairwise Identity and Cost Scores Ordination.

Hodkinson, B. P., and F. Lutzoni. 2010. Do lichens harbor their own rhizobia? Inoculum: in press.

Cartwright, R., B.[P.]Hodkinson, A. Stamatakis, and R. Lücking. 2010. Extracting Phylogenetic Information from Ambiguous Regions through Multidemensional Scaling of Pairwise Likelihoods. Evolution 2010, abs. 901.
View abstract (website)

Hodkinson, B. P., and F. Lutzoni. 2009. Secret alliances: Patterns of association between lichens and non-photobiont bacteria. In: Botany and Mycology 2009: Abstract Book. Botanical Society of America, Granville, Ohio, pg. 249.
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Download abstract (PDF file)

Hodkinson, B. P., and F. Lutzoni. 2008. Lichen-associated non-photobiont bacteria: the third symbiont? Inoculum 59(4): 34. [Student Presentation Award: best student conference paper]
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Hodkinson, B. P., T. M. Loveless, P. E. Bishop, and F. Lutzoni. 2008. Nitrogen-fixing non-photobiont bacteria and lichens: an alternative lifestyle? In: Abstracts for IAL 6- ABLS Joint Meeting. International Association for Lichenology, Monterey, CA, pg. 29.
Download abstract book (PDF file)
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Hodkinson, B. P., and F. Lutzoni. 2007. Non-photosynthetic bacteria and the lichen symbiosis. In: ABLS Meeting, 2007, Xalapa, México: Abstracts. E. De Luna (ed.). INECOL, Xalapa, México, abs. O10. [A. J. Sharp Award: best student conference paper]
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Hodkinson, B. P., and M. A. Case. 2007. Lichen ecology in coastal ravines. In: ABLS Meeting, 2007, Xalapa, México: Abstracts. E. De Luna (ed.). INECOL, Xalapa, México, abs. P03.
View abstract (website)

Hodkinson, B. P., F. M. Lutzoni, T. M. Loveless, and P. E. Bishop. 2006. Non-photosynthetic bacteria and the lichen symbiosis. In: 5th International Symbiosis Society Congress: Program, Abstracts, Participants. M. Bright, M. Horn, D. Zook, S. Lücker, and I. Kolar (eds.). Promare, Gdynia, Poland, pg. 95.
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"Little progress can be made if new techniques are used only
to replace, rather than complement, the old" (E.S. Luttrell, 1989).

"Your observations are important to others" (Fortune Cookie, 2009).

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