RESEARCH INTERESTS
Professor Hufford is interested in flowering plant systematics and evolution. His research applies phylogenetic systematics to resolve evolutionary relationships and explore diversification processes. He and his students apply molecular markers in phylogenetic studies of various angiosperm groups. Phylogenetic results are used to explore patterns and processes of diversification of plant form, ecology, and geography. Resolving taxonomic problems and revising classifications are also key goals of their phylogenetic research. An area of emphasis in the Hufford laboratory is plant phylogeography in the American West. This research examines the geographic structure of genetic diversity to understand landscape, demographic, and temporal forces that have shaped plant diversity in the West.