Contact Info

Christopher R. Hardy, Ph.D.
Curator of the Herbarium &
Professor
Department of Biology
Millersville University
288 Roddy Hall
50 E. Frederick St.
Millersville, PA 17551, USA
Phone: (717) 871-2312
Fax: (717) 872-3905
christopher.hardy[at]millersville.edu

Parksia articles

Moyer SL, CR Hardy. 2016. Botany of the Luceille Hagarman Reading Sculpture Garden. Parksia 5: 1-10.

....more from archive

Scholarships

Scholarships and other financial opportunities for students can be found here.

News & Events

Aug: The Herbarium's Nature Atlas accrued its 10,000th species on Friday, August 30, with an entry for a Malayan civet, Viverra tangalunga, an unusual relative of the cat family native to the Malayan Peninsula and nearby islands.

Jul: The Herbarium surpassed 23,000 specimens on July 13 with a specimen of Japanese stiltgrass, Microstegium vimineum, collected by Micaela Nieves (Plant Sciences '25) in Shenk's Ferry Wildflower Preserve. With the cooperation of the Lancaster Conservancy, Micaela's thesis research seeks to document the flora of this Preserve that is popular with nature enthusiasts in the region. Her collection of Japanese stiltgrass is the first one to voucher the occurrence of this invasive species in the preserve.

Apr: Dr. Hardy presented a lecture on Forensic Botany at the Millersville Lioness Club (Apr 2).

Mar: Dr. Hardy will be lecturing on Forensic Botany at the Advanced Homicide Symposium of the Pennsylvania State Police (Mar 8, PSU Harrisburg).

Feb: Dr. Hardy will be speaking on "Herbaria & Forensic Botany" at the Lancaster County Garden Club (Feb 12).

Feb: Duncan Lynn (MU Plant Sciences '24) successively defended his honors thesis on the taxonomy and ethnobotany of taro in area markets. He has now accepted a job at Green Leaf Plants, a division of Aris Horticulture, Inc. Congraulations, Duncan! (Feb 12).

Jan: Dr. Hardy will be giving the talk "Case Studies in Forensic Botany" at the Biology Colloquium on Wednesday, Jan 31 (4 pm, Caputo 210).

Jan: Dr. Hardy will be sharing an overview of his recent forensic botany case work with the Elizabethtown Rotary Club on Monday, Jan 29 (6 pm).

Dec: David Modica ('23) successfully defended his honors thesis on the Allium green onion vegetable complex and will graduate this Winter. Congratulations David.

Oct: Dr. Hardy will be speaking about forensic botany in the Willow Valley Special Events series (Oct 19).

....more from archive

Herbarium Associates

What is a Herbarium Associate?

John R. Ambler, PhD
Botanist
James C. Parks Herbarium
Millersville University
Interests: PA Floristics, Plant ecology, Invasive species management.

Nazli W. Hardy, PhD, MBA
Associate Professor of Computer Science
Millersville University
Interests: Biodiversity informatics; Network security; Internet education.

Scott L. Martin^MU'91, PWS (Professional Wetland Scientist)
Senior Scientist
ARM Group LLC
Interests: Wetland delineation; Rare, Threatened, and Endangered Species Surveys; Biological Treasure Hunter

Howard J. Miller, Jr.
Viticulturist
James C. Parks Herbarium
Millersville University
Interests: Grape systematics; Viticultural science.

John R. Wallace, PhD
Professor of Biology
Millersville University
Interests: forensic use of algae in PMSI estimation; aquatic ecology; evolution.

Patrick J. Cooney, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus of Physics
Millersville University
Interests: Photography.

Jorge Mena-Alí , Ph.D.
Visiting Assistant Professor of Biology
Franklin & Marshall College
Interests: Ecology and evolution of host-pathogen interactions; Portulacaceae.

Zel Stoltzfus
Artist, Scientific Illustrator
http://zellustration.squarespace.com/
Interests: Scientific illustration.

 

Media

Click here.

BIOL 471
Computational Methods in Systematics

This class is for either biology majors or computer science majors. Biology majors should have excellent familiarity with the use of PC computers for Microsoft Excel, the use of text editors for manipulating text files, and Web navigation. Computer Science majors should have a strong interest in the application of computer science to biodiversity research and conservation, evolution, or bioinformatics.

Meeting 3 hrs per week, 1/3 is used for lecture, 2/3 for lab exercises on the computer. Exams and quizzes are often performed by executing tasks on the computer.

Although taught by Dr. Hardy, this course is not a plant course. The methods and theory taught are broadly applicable.

Prerequisites are Concepts of Botany (BIOL 221) and Concepts of Zoology (BIOL 211), or permission of Dr. Hardy (the latter particularly for computer science majors who may not have taken both of those biology courses).

Spring 2009 Syllabus

Module 01: Biodiversity Informatics

Exercise 01 - Sources of Biodiversity Data and Simple Biodiversity Mashups (10 pts; due Jan 26 at begining of lab)

Exercise 02 Preparation for Interactive Key Construction (no points)

demo-sliks-key to selected hardwood trees
demo-data-set to conifer genera
Exercise to Conifer Key construction

Project 01 SLIKS Key Construction for PA Trees (25 pts; due Mar 9 at beginning of class)

Module 02: Biogeographic Mapping, Analysis, and Modeling

Literature & Learning Goals for this Module

DIVA-GIS Tutorial (in class 16 Feb, no points):
procedure pdf, Bolivian tutorial data in zip folder,
DIVA-GIS Users Manual

DIVA-GIS Assignment (10 pts; due Wed 25 Feb by 5 pm):
procedure pdf, Wild potato data in zip folder

GEOLOCATE of Herbarium Specimens Assignment (10 pts; due Mon Mar 9 at beginning of class)
procedure pdf, GEOLOCATE Users Manual

BIOCLIM Modeling Exercise (no pts; performed 9 Mar 2009):
procedure pdf

MAXENT Tutorial (no pts; performed 9 Mar 2009):
procedure pdf

Project 02 - Climatic Envelope Modeling (35 pts; due Fri Apr 3 by 5 pm)

Module 03: Phylogenetic Inference

Learn theory and practice of reconstructing the evolutionary history of species.
Learn how to construct cladograms manually and with computer programs.
Learn how to reconstruct ancestral states.
Learn how to find DNA sequence data on the Web and to analyze the data to infer phylogenetic relationships.

Module 04: Species Delimitiation, Diagnostics, and Conservation Forensics

Learn algorithms for delimiting species.
Learn how to use DNA sequence data to identify unknown organisms to species.

Visit Spring 2007 Course Website or Manual

A Website containing information and photos of some non-native plants in and around Pennsylvanian woodlands.	An interactive checklist of Lancaster County plants with links to illustrations. Searchable by habit plus federal and state conservation, wetland, and nativity designations.	An authoritative informatics website providing just about everything one could ever want to know about the 31 species of woody vines in Pennsylvania.

An interactive checklist of MD plants with links to illustrations. Searchable by habit plus federal and state conservation, wetland, and nativity designations.	An interactive checklist of woody PA plants with links to illustrations. Searchable by habit, conservation status, and taxonomic class.	For Manuel.

A 22x28" poster-version of an illustrated glossary of botanical terminology.	A 22x28" poster-version of a photographic guide to plants invasive to Mid-Atlantic woodlands	A 24x36" poster-version of a photographic guide to lawn weeds

2008

Hardy CR, NW Hardy (2008) Simple biodiversity mashups for non-tech-savvy biologists: a demonstration using the liana flora of Pennsylvania, USA. Journal of the Torrey Botanical Society 135: 585-594.

Hardy CR, P Moline, HP Linder (2008) A Phylogeny for the African Restionaceae, and New Perspectives on Morphology's Role in Generating Complete Species Phylogenies for Large Clades. International Journal of Plant Sciences 169: 377-390.
(Please contact Keeper for pdf of article; click here for supporting electronic appendices, matrices, and cladograms)

2007

Hardy CR, HP Linder (2007) Phylogeny and historical ecology of Rhodocoma (Restionaceae) from the Cape Floristic Region. Aliso 23: 213-226.
(pdf available)

2006

Hardy CR (2006) Reconstructing ancestral ecologies: challenges and possible solutions. Diversity & Distributions 12: 7-19.
(pdf available)

Davis JI, G Petersen, O Seberg, DW Stevenson, CR Hardy, MP Simmons, FA Michelangeli, DH Goldman, LM Campbell, CD Specht, JI Cohen (2006) Are mitochondrial genes useful for the analysis of monocot relationships? Taxon 55: 857-870.

Petersen G, O Seberg, JI Davis, D Goldman, DW Stevenson, LM Campbell, FA Michelangeli, CD Specht, MW Chase, MF Fay, JC Pires, JV Freudenstein, CR Hardy, MP Simmons (2006) Mitochondrial data in monocot phylogenetics. Aliso 22: 52-62.
(pdf available)

2005

Hardy CR, HP Linder (2005) Intraspecific variability and timing in ancestral ecology reconstruction: A test case from the Cape flora. Systematic Biology 54 (2): 299-316.
(pdf available)

Linder HP, CR Hardy (2005) Speciation in the Cape flora: A macroevolutionary and macroecological perspective. Pp. 46-73 in F. T.
Bakker, L. W. Chatrou, B. Gravendeel and P. B. Pelser, eds. Plant species-level systematics: new perspectives on pattern & process. Koeltz, Königstein
(pdf available)

Linder HP, CR Hardy, F Rutschmann (2005) Taxon sampling effects in molecular clock dating: An example from the African Restionaceae. Molecular Phylogenetics & Evolution 35: 569-582.
(pdf available)

2004

Hardy CR, RB Faden (2004). Commelinaceae. Pp 425-427 in Smith N, S Mori, A Henderson, DW Stevenson, SV Heald (eds.) Flowering Plants of the Neotropics. Princeton University Press.

Hardy CR, RB Faden (2004) Plowmanianthus, a new genus of Commelinaceae with five new species from tropical America. Systematic Botany 29 (2): 316-333.
(pdf available)

Hardy CR, JI Davis, DW Stevenson (2004) Floral organogenesis in Plowmanianthus (Commelinaceae). International Journal of Plant Sciences 165 (4): 511-519.
(pdf available)

Davis JI, DW Stevenson, G Petersen, O Seberg, LM Campbell, JV Freudenstein, DH Goldman, CR Hardy, FA Michelangeli, MP Simmons, CD Specht, F Vergara-Silva, MA Gandolfo (2004) A phylogeny of the monocots, as inferred from rbcL and atpA sequence variation, and a comparison of methods for calculating jackknife and bootstrap values. Systematic Botany 29 (3): 467-510.
(pdf available)

Linder HP, CR Hardy (2004) Evolution of the species-rich Cape flora. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London B 359 (1450): 1623-1632.
(pdf available)  

2003

Hardy CR (2003) Malawi . Natural History 112 (travel issue, supplement 4A): 75.

Hardy CR, DL Lipscomb, KC Nixon, H Ochoterena (2003) WinClada ver. 1.0, a basic users manual. Available upon request from Kevin C. Nixon, Bailey Hortorium, 462 Mann Library, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853.  

2001

Hardy CR (2001) Systematics of Cochliostema, Geogenanthus, and an undescribed genus in the spiderwort family Commelinaceae. Ph.D. Dissertation, Cornell University , Ithaca , NY .  

2000

Dyer AF, JC Parks, S Lindsay (2000) Historical review of the uncertain taxonomic status of Cystopteris dickieana R.Sim (Dickie's bladder fern). Edinburgh Journal of Botany 57 (1): 71-81.
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

Hardy CR, DW Stevenson (2000) Floral organogenesis in some species of Tradescantia and Callisia (Commelinaceae). International Journal of Plant Sciences 161 (4): 551-562.
(pdf available)

Hardy CR, DW Stevenson (2000) Development of the flower, gametophytes, and floral vasculature in Cochliostema odoratissimum (Commelinaceae). Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 134 (1): 131-157.
(pdf available)

Hardy CR, DW Stevenson, HG Kiss (2000) Development of the flower, gametophytes, and floral vasculature in Dichorisandra thyrsiflora (Commelinaceae). American Journal of Botany 87 (9): 1228-1239.
(pdf available)

Parks JC, AF Dyter, S Lindsay (2000) Allozyme, spore and frond variation in some Scottish populations of the ferns Cystopteris dickieana and Cystopteris fragilis. Edinburgh Journal of Botany 57 (1): 83-105.
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

Parks JC (2000). Lycopodiaceae. Pp 64-70 in Rhoads AF, TA Block (eds.) The plants of Pennsylvania: an illustrated manual. University of Pennsylvania Press.
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

Parks JC, JD Montgomery (2000). Ferns. Pp 71-106 in Rhoads AF, TA Block (eds.) The plants of Pennsylvania: an illustrated manual. University of Pennsylvania Press.
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

Stevenson DW, JI Davis, JV Freudenstein, CR Hardy, MP Simmons, CD Specht (2000) A phylogenetic analysis of the monocotyledons based on morphological and molecular character sets, with comments on the placement of Acorus and Hydatellaceae. Pp 17-24 in Wilson KL and DA Morrison (eds.) Monocots: systematics and evolution. CSIRO Publishing: Australia.

1998

Parks JC, KA Mosser (1998) A morphological and allozymal study of a Cystoperis tennesseensis (Dryopteridaceae) population: first report of the species in Lancaster County, PA. Journal of the Pennsylvania Academy of Sciences 71 (2): 78-83.
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

1989

Parks JC (1989) Distribution of gametophytic populations of Vittaria and Trichomanes in Pennsylvania. Rhodora 91: 201-206.
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

1985

Parks JC (1985) Erigenia bulbosa in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Bartonia 51.
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

Stober SS, JC Parks (1985) Chromosomal studies of Physalis virginiana var. subglabrata and Physalis heterophylla. Bartonia 51: 65-68.
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

1984

Parks JC (1984) A first report of the fern genus Vittaria in New York. Rhodora 86 (848): 421-423.
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

Parks JC (1984) New Pennsylvania locality of Cryptogramma stelleri. Bartonia 50: 63.
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

1983

Parks JC (1983) The fern genera Vittaria and Trichomanes in the Northeastern United States. Rhodora 85 (841): 83-92.
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

1973

Parks JC (1973) A revision of North American and Caribbean Melanthera (Compositae). Rhodora 75: 169-210.
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

1969

Parks JC (1969) Simple technique for demonstrating chromosomal coils using Tradescantia pollen mother cells. Proceedings of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science 43: 61-63.  
(Millersville Library Bibliography)

1968

Parks JC (1968) A revision of the genus Melanthera Rohr (Compositae): in North America and the Caribbean. Ph.D. Dissertation, Vanderbilt University.  
(Millersville Library Bibliography)