Kyle Dexter

PROF

Personal profile

Websites

Qualifications

Ph.D. in Biology, with specialisation in Genetics

Duke University, 2008

B.A. in Biology and Environmental Sciences

University of Virginia, 2002

Current Research Interests

Tropical dry forests, thickets, savannas and similar seasonally dry vegetation cover half the tropics, represent the most variable terrestrial flux of the global carbon cycle and house over a billion people in mostly marginalised societies. Yet, tropical dry vegetation remains poorly studied compared to the wet tropics. My driving motivation is to deepen our understanding of tropical dry vegetation, from ecological, ecosystem function, evolutionary and biogeographical perspectives.

Research Groups

I manage the research group PLEEBs (PLant Evolutionary Ecologists and Biogeographers) in the School of GeoSciences at the University of Edinburgh. Our interests are broad, including phylogenetic approaches to understanding historical community assembly, genomics of non-model plant clades, vegetation monitoring to document changes in ecosystem function over time and the socio-ecology of tropical woodlands. We are united by a shared passion for studying natural plant populations (largely in the tropics) and their intersections with anthropogenic environmental change and human societies. We believe in careful and thorough scientific work that is also ethically considered.

Research Interests

My personal research efforts at present can be divided into two broad areas. The first focuses on large-scale biogeographic patterns in the dry tropics, and unpicking the drivers of variation in ecosystem structure, function and composition. I lead a global network of researchers with permanent sampling plots (PSPs) in tropical dry forests, savannas and thickets as part of the SECO Project. If you are keen to be part of this network, please write me.

The second main branch of my research comprises eco-evolutionary studies of individual plant lineages. I am of the firm belief that major biological breakthroughs often come from the knowledge accumulated by detailed studies of individual clades over years of dedicated research. The main lineages I currently focus on are Inga (Fabaceae), one of the most speciose and ecologically abundant lineages in Neotropical rain forests, and Petalidium (Acanthaceae), an intriguing genus of woody shrubs that shows remarkable ecological and evolutionary success in one of the worst places to live as a plant, the Namib Desert of Angola and Namibia.

Teaching

My teaching focuses mostly on field ecology and quantitative skills. I run a first-year undergraduate field course where students learn the process of biological identification, focusing on Scottish plants and invertebrates, and how to collect basic ecological data on organisms. My quantitative skills teaching ranges from how to organise a spreadsheet to statistical modelling, with a focus on implementation in the R Statistical Software.

Administrative Roles

I am Deputy Director the E4 Doctoral Training Partnership and manage the training of ~100 PhD students over their time at the University of Edinburgh. I am also Co-Director of the Centre for Adapting to Changing Environments (a.k.a. ACE Centre) at the University of Edinburgh, which unites staff from across the university with outside partners to address major challenges around environmental change.

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  • 1 Similar Profiles
  • Patterns and Drivers of Phylogenetic Beta Diversity in the Forests and Savannas of Africa

    Rees, M., Fayolle, A., Godlee, J. L., Gorel, A. P., Harris, D. J. & Dexter, K. G., 7 Apr 2025, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Journal of biogeography. e15140.

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Open Access
    File
  • Rampant Reticulation in a Rapid Radiation of Tropical Trees - Insights from Inga (Fabaceae)

    Schley, R., Twyford, A. D., Dexter, K. & Kidner, C. A., 4 Apr 2025, (Accepted/In press) In: Systematic biology.

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

  • Precipitation-fire-functional interactions control biomass stocks and carbon exchanges across the world’s largest savanna

    Williams, M., Milodowski, D. T., Smallman, T. L., Dexter, K. G., Hegerl, G. C., McNicol, I. M., O'Sullivan, M., Roesch, C. M., Ryan, C. M., Sitch, S. & Valade, A., 27 Mar 2025, In: Biogeosciences. 22, 6, p. 1597–1614

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Open Access
    File
  • Satellite remote sensing can operationalise the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology in the biome-diverse North-East of Brazil

    Wells, L., Dexter, K., Pennington, T., Cotta Coutinho, Í. A., Ramos, D., Phillips, O. L., Baker, T. & Ryan, C., 14 Mar 2025, In: Frontiers of Biogeography. 18, Copyright Lucy H. Wells et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0).

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Open Access
    File
  • Variation in wood density across South American tropical forests

    Sullivan, M. J. P., Phillips, O. L., Galbraith, D., Almeida, E., De oliveira, E. A., Almeida, J., Dávila, E. Á., Alves, L. F., Andrade, A., Aragão, L., Araujo-Murakami, A., Arets, E., Arroyo, L., Cruz, O. A. M., Baccaro, F., Baker, T. R., Banki, O., Baraloto, C., Barlow, J. & Barroso, J. & 150 others, Berenguer, E., Blanc, L., Blundo, C., Bonal, D., Bongers, F., Bordin, K. M., Brienen, R. J. W., Broggio, I. S., Burban, B., Cabral, G., Camargo, J. L., Cardoso, D., Carniello, M. A., Castro, W., De lima, H. C., Cavalheiro, L., Ribeiro, S. C., Ramos, S. C. P., Moscoso, V. C., Chave, J., Coelho, F., Comiskey, J. A., Valverde, F. C., Costa, F., Coutinho, I. A. C., Da costa, A. C. L., De medeiros, M. B., Del aguila pasquel, J., Derroire, G., Dexter, K. G., Disney, M., Do espírito santo, M. M., Domingues, T. F., Dourdain, A., Duque, A., Rangel, C. D., Elias, F., Esquivel-Muelbert, A., Farfan-Rios, W., Fauset, S., Feldpausch, T., Fernandes, G. W., Ferreira, J., Nunes, Y. R. F., Figueiredo, J. C. G., Cabreara, K. G., Gonzalez, R., Hernández, L., Herrera, R., Honorio coronado, E. N., Huasco, W. H., Iguatemy, M., Joly, C. A., Kalamandeen, M., Killeen, T., Klipel, J., Klitgaard, B., Laurance, S. G., Laurance, W. F., Levesley, A., Lewis, S. L., Lima dan, M., Lopez-Gonzalez, G., Magnusson, W., Malhi, Y., Malizia, L., Malizia, A., Manzatto, A. G., Peña, J. L. M., Marimon, B. S., Marimon junior, B. H., Martínez-Villa, J. A., Reis, S. M., Metzker, T., Milliken, W., Monteagudo-Mendoza, A., Moonlight, P., Morandi, P. S., Moser, P., Müller, S. C., Nascimento, M., Negreiros, D., Lima, A. N., Vargas, P. N., Oliveira, W. L., Palacios, W., Pallqui camacho, N. C., Gutierrez, A. P., Pardo molina, G., Pedra de abreu, K. M., Peña-Claros, M., Pena rodrigues, P. J. F., Pennington, R. T., Pickavance, G. C., Pipoly, J., Pitman, N. C. A., Playfair, M., Pontes-Lopes, A., Poorter, L., Prestes, N. C. C. D. S., Ramírez-Angulo, H., Réjou-Méchain, M., Reynel rodriguez, C., Rivas-Torres, G., Rodrigues, P. M. S., De jesus rodrigues, D., De sousa, T. R., Rodrigues pinto, J. R., Rodriguez m., G. M., Roucoux, K., Ruokolainen, K., Ryan, C. M., Revilla, N. S., Salomão, R., Santos, R. M., Sarkinen, T., Scabin, A., Bergamin, R. S., Schietti, J., De meira junior, M. S., Serrano, J., Silman, M., Silva, R. C., Silva, C. V. J., Silva, J. O., Silveira, M., Simon, M. F., Soto-Shareva, Y. C., Souza, P., Souza, R., Sposito, T., Talbot, J., Ter steege, H., Terborgh, J., Thomas, R., Toledo, M., Torres-Lezama, A., Trujillo, W., Van der hout, P., Veloso, M. D. D. M., Vieira, S. A., Vilanova, E., Villalobos cayo, J. M., Villela, D. M., Viscarra, L. J., Vos, V. A., Wortel, V., Ishida, F. Y., Zuidema, P. A. & Zwerts, J. A., 10 Mar 2025, In: Nature Communications. 16, 1, 2351.

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Open Access
    File
  • Phylogenetic conservatism in the relationship between functional and demographic characteristics in Amazon tree taxa

    Sanchez-Martinez, P. (Creator), Dexter, K. (Creator), Draper, F. (Creator), Baraloto, C. (Creator), Iêda, A. (Creator), de Souza Coelho, L. (Creator), de Almeida Matos, F. D. (Creator), de Andrade Lima Filho, D. (Creator), Salomão, R. (Creator), Wittmann, F. (Creator), Castilho, C. (Creator), Carim, M. (Creator), Guevara Andino, J. E. (Creator), Phillips, O. (Creator), Magnusson, B. (Creator), Sabatier, D. (Creator), Cardenas Revilla, J. (Creator), Molino, J.-F. (Creator), Irume, M. (Creator), Pires Martins, M. (Creator), da Silva Guimarães, J. R. (Creator), Ramos, J. (Creator), Banki, O. (Creator), Fernandez Piedade, M. T. (Creator), Cárdenas, D. (Creator), Pitman, N. (Creator), Oreste Demarchi, L. (Creator), Schöngart, J. (Creator), Luize, B. G. (Creator), Moraes de Leão Novo, E. M. (Creator), Núñez Vargas, P. (Creator), Silva, T. (Creator), Venticinque, E. (Creator), Gilberto Manzatto, A. (Creator), Farias Costa Reis, N. (Creator), Terborgh, J. (Creator), Regina Casula, K. (Creator), Honorio Coronado, E. (Creator), Monteagudo Mendoza, A. (Creator), Carlos Montero, J. (Creator), Costa, F. (Creator), Feldpausch, T. (Creator), Quaresma, A. (Creator), Castaño, N. (Creator), Zartman, C. (Creator), Killeen, T. (Creator), Marimon, B. (Creator), Marimon Junior, B. H. (Creator), Vasquez, R. (Creator), Mostacedo, B. (Creator), Leandro de Assis, R. (Creator), Amaral, D. (Creator), Engel, J. (Creator), Castellanos, H. (Creator), Madeiros, M. (Creator), Simon, M. (Creator), Andrade, A. (Creator), Camargo, J. (Creator), Laurance, B. (Creator), Laurance, S. (Creator), Rincón, L. (Creator), Schietti, J. (Creator), Sousa, T. (Creator), de Sousa Farias, E. (Creator), Aparecida Lopes, M. (Creator), Lima Magalhães, J. L. (Creator), Mendonça Nascimento, H. E. (Creator), Lima de Queiroz, H. (Creator), Aymard, G. (Creator), Brienen, R. (Creator), Stevenson, P. (Creator), Araujo-Murakami, A. (Creator), Cintra, B. (Creator), Baker, T. (Creator), Feitosa, Y. (Creator), Mogollón, H. (Creator), Peres, C. (Creator), Silman, M. (Creator), Ferreira, L. (Creator), Lozada, J. (Creator), Comiskey, J. (Creator), de Toledo, J. J. (Creator), Damasco, G. (Creator), Dávila, N. (Creator), García, R. (Creator), Lopes, A. (Creator), Vicentini, A. (Creator), Cornejo Valverde, F. (Creator), Alonso, A. (Creator), Arroyo, L. (Creator), Dallmeier, F. (Creator), Freitas, V. (Creator), Jimenez, E. M. (Creator), Neill, D. (Creator), Peñuela Mora, M. C. (Creator), Costa Noronha, J. (Creator), Aguiar, D. (Creator), Rodrigues Barbosa, F. (Creator), Bredin, Y. (Creator), de Sá Carpanedo, R. (Creator), Antunes Carvalho, F. (Creator), Coelho de Souza, F. (Creator), Feeley, K. (Creator), Gribel, R. (Creator), Haugaasen, T. (Creator), Hawes, J. (Creator), Petratti Pansonato, M. (Creator), Pipoly, J. (Creator), Ríos Paredes, M. (Creator), de Jesus Rodrigues, D. (Creator), Barlow, J. (Creator), Berenguer, E. (Creator), da Silva, I. (Creator), Julia Ferreira, M. (Creator), Ferreira, J. (Creator), Fine, P. (Creator), Carneiro Guedes, M. (Creator), Levis, C. (Creator), Licona, J. C. (Creator), Villa, B. (Creator), Vos, V. (Creator), Cerón, C. (Creator), Machado Durgante, F. (Creator), Fonty, É. (Creator), Henkel, T. (Creator), Householder, E. (Creator), Huamantupa-Chuquimaco, I. (Creator), Silveira, M. (Creator), Stropp, J. (Creator), Thomas, R. (Creator), Daly, D. (Creator), Milliken, W. (Creator), Pardo Molina, G. (Creator), Pennington, T. (Creator), Vieira, I. (Creator), Weiss Albuquerque, B. (Creator), Campelo, W. (Creator), Fuentes, A. (Creator), Klitgaard, B. (Creator), Marcelo Pena, J. L. (Creator), Tello, S. (Creator), Vriesendorp, C. (Creator), Chave, J. (Creator), Di Fiore, A. (Creator), Hilário, R. R. (Creator), de Oliveira Pereira, L. (Creator), Phillips, J. F. (Creator), Rivas, G. (Creator), van Andel, T. (Creator), von Hildebrand, P. (Creator), Balee, W. (Creator), Marques Barbosa, E. (Creator), de Matos Bonates, L. C. (Creator), Dávila Doza, H. P. (Creator), Hoffman, B. (Creator), Braga Junqueira, A. (Creator), Malhi, Y. (Creator), de Andrade Miranda, I. P. (Creator), Mozombite Pinto, L. F. (Creator), Prieto, A. (Creator), Rudas, A. (Creator), Ruschel, A. (Creator), Silva, N. (Creator), Vela, C. (Creator), Zent, S. (Creator), Zent, E. (Creator), Cano, A. (Creator), Carrero, Y. (Creator), Correa, D. (Creator), Costa, J. (Creator), Flores, B. (Creator), Galbraith, D. (Creator), Holmgren, M. (Creator), Kalamandeen, M. (Creator), Lobo, G. (Creator), Montenegro, L. T. (Creator), Trindade Nascimento, M. (Creator), Adalardo de Oliveira, A. (Creator), Marina Pombo, M. (Creator), Ramirez-Angulo, H. (Creator), Rocha, M. (Creator), Vizoni Scudeller, V. (Creator), Umaña, M. N. (Creator), van der Heijden, G. (Creator), Vilanova Torre, E. (Creator), Baider, C. (Creator), Balslev, H. (Creator), Cárdenas, S. (Creator), Casas, L. (Creator), Farfan, W. (Creator), Ferreira, C. (Creator), Linares-Palomino, R. (Creator), Mendoza, C. (Creator), Mesones, I. (Creator), Parada, G. A. (Creator), Torres-Lezama, A. (Creator), Urrego, L. E. (Creator), Villarroel, D. (Creator), Zagt, R. (Creator), Alexiades, M. (Creator), Almeida de Oliveira, E. (Creator), Fortier, R. (Creator), Garcia, K. (Creator), Hernandez, L. (Creator), Palacios, W. (Creator), Pansini, S. (Creator), Pauletto, D. (Creator), Ramirez Arevalo, F. (Creator), Felipe Sampaio, A. (Creator), Valderrama, E. (Creator), Valenzuela Gamarra, L. (Creator), van der Sande, M. (Creator), Poorter, L. (Creator) & ter Steege, H. (Creator), Zenodo, 17 Oct 2024

    Dataset

  • Data from: Pre‐adaptation and adaptation shape trait‐environment matching in the Neotropics

    Velásquez Puentes, F. J. (Creator), Torke, B. M. (Creator), Barratt, C. D. (Creator), Dexter, K. G. (Creator), Pennington, T. (Creator), Pezzini, F. F. (Creator), Zizka, A. (Creator) & Onstein, R. E. (Creator), Dryad, 17 Jul 2023

    Dataset

  • Data from: Using targeted enrichment of nuclear genes to increase phylogenetic resolution in the neotropical rain forest genus Inga (Leguminosae: Mimosoideae)

    Nicholls, J. A. (Creator), Pennington, R. T. (Creator), Koenen, E. J. M. (Creator), Hughes, C. E. (Creator), Hearn, J. (Creator), Bunnefeld, L. (Creator), Dexter, K. G. (Creator), Stone, G. N. (Creator), Kidner, C. A. (Creator) & Koenen, E. J. M. (Creator), Dryad, 1 Sept 2015

    Dataset

  • Phylogenetic conservatism in the relationship between functional and demographic characteristics in Amazon tree taxa

    Sanchez-Martinez, P. (Creator), Dexter, K. (Creator), Draper, F. (Creator), Baraloto, C. (Creator), Iêda, A. (Creator), De Souza Coelho, L. (Creator), De Almeida Matos, F. D. (Creator), De Andrade Lima Filho, D. (Creator), Salomão, R. (Creator), Wittmann, F. (Creator), Castilho, C. (Creator), Carim, M. (Creator), Guevara Andino, J. E. (Creator), Phillips, O. (Creator), Magnusson, B. (Creator), Sabatier, D. (Creator), Cardenas Revilla, J. (Creator), Molino, J.-F. (Creator), Irume, M. (Creator), Pires Martins, M. (Creator), Da Silva Guimarães, J. R. (Creator), Ramos, J. (Creator), Banki, O. (Creator), Fernandez Piedade, M. T. (Creator), Cárdenas, D. (Creator), Pitman, N. (Creator), Oreste Demarchi, L. (Creator), Schöngart, J. (Creator), Luize, B. G. (Creator), Moraes De Leão Novo, E. M. (Creator), Núñez Vargas, P. (Creator), Silva, T. (Creator), Venticinque, E. (Creator), Gilberto Manzatto, A. (Creator), Farias Costa Reis, N. (Creator), Terborgh, J. (Creator), Regina Casula, K. (Creator), Honorio Coronado, E. (Creator), Monteagudo Mendoza, A. (Creator), Carlos Montero, J. (Creator), Costa, F. (Creator), Feldpausch, T. (Creator), Quaresma, A. (Creator), Castaño, N. (Creator), Zartman, C. (Creator), Killeen, T. (Creator), Marimon, B. (Creator), Marimon Junior, B. H. (Creator), Vasquez, R. (Creator), Mostacedo, B. (Creator), Leandro De Assis, R. (Creator), Amaral, D. (Creator), Engel, J. (Creator), Castellanos, H. (Creator), Madeiros, M. (Creator), Simon, M. (Creator), Andrade, A. (Creator), Camargo, J. (Creator), Laurance, B. (Creator), Laurance, S. (Creator), Rincón, L. (Creator), Schietti, J. (Creator), Sousa, T. (Creator), De Sousa Farias, E. (Creator), Aparecida Lopes, M. (Creator), Lima Magalhães, J. L. (Creator), Mendonça Nascimento, H. E. (Creator), Lima De Queiroz, H. (Creator), Aymard, G. (Creator), Brienen, R. (Creator), Stevenson, P. (Creator), Araujo-Murakami, A. (Creator), Cintra, B. (Creator), Baker, T. (Creator), Feitosa, Y. (Creator), Mogollón, H. (Creator), Peres, C. (Creator), Silman, M. (Creator), Ferreira, L. (Creator), Lozada, J. (Creator), Comiskey, J. (Creator), De Toledo, J. J. (Creator), Damasco, G. (Creator), Dávila, N. (Creator), García, R. (Creator), Lopes, A. (Creator), Vicentini, A. (Creator), Cornejo Valverde, F. (Creator), Alonso, A. (Creator), Arroyo, L. (Creator), Dallmeier, F. (Creator), Freitas, V. (Creator), Jimenez, E. M. (Creator), Neill, D. (Creator), Peñuela Mora, M. C. (Creator), Costa Noronha, J. (Creator), Aguiar, D. (Creator), Rodrigues Barbosa, F. (Creator), Bredin, Y. (Creator), De Sá Carpanedo, R. (Creator), Antunes Carvalho, F. (Creator), Coelho De Souza, F. (Creator), Feeley, K. (Creator), Gribel, R. (Creator), Haugaasen, T. (Creator), Hawes, J. (Creator), Petratti Pansonato, M. (Creator), Pipoly, J. (Creator), Ríos Paredes, M. (Creator), De Jesus Rodrigues, D. (Creator), Barlow, J. (Creator), Berenguer, E. (Creator), Da Silva, I. (Creator), Julia Ferreira, M. (Creator), Ferreira, J. (Creator), Fine, P. (Creator), Carneiro Guedes, M. (Creator), Levis, C. (Creator), Licona, J. C. (Creator), Villa, B. (Creator), Vos, V. (Creator), Cerón, C. (Creator), Machado Durgante, F. (Creator), Fonty, É. (Creator), Henkel, T. (Creator), Householder, E. (Creator), Huamantupa-Chuquimaco, I. (Creator), Silveira, M. (Creator), Stropp, J. (Creator), Thomas, R. (Creator), Daly, D. (Creator), Milliken, W. (Creator), Pardo Molina, G. (Creator), Pennington, T. (Creator), Vieira, I. (Creator), Weiss Albuquerque, B. (Creator), Campelo, W. (Creator), Fuentes, A. (Creator), Klitgaard, B. (Creator), Marcelo Pena, J. L. (Creator), Tello, S. (Creator), Vriesendorp, C. (Creator), Chave, J. (Creator), Di Fiore, A. (Creator), Hilário, R. R. (Creator), De Oliveira Pereira, L. (Creator), Phillips, J. F. (Creator), Rivas, G. (Creator), Van Andel, T. (Creator), Von Hildebrand, P. (Creator), Balee, W. (Creator), Marques Barbosa, E. (Creator), De Matos Bonates, L. C. (Creator), Dávila Doza, H. P. (Creator), Hoffman, B. (Creator), Braga Junqueira, A. (Creator), Malhi, Y. (Creator), De Andrade Miranda, I. P. (Creator), Mozombite Pinto, L. F. (Creator), Prieto, A. (Creator), Rudas, A. (Creator), Ruschel, A. (Creator), Silva, N. (Creator), Vela, C. (Creator), Zent, S. (Creator), Zent, E. (Creator), Cano, A. (Creator), Carrero, Y. (Creator), Correa, D. (Creator), Costa, J. (Creator), Flores, B. (Creator), Galbraith, D. (Creator), Holmgren, M. (Creator), Kalamandeen, M. (Creator), Lobo, G. (Creator), Montenegro, L. T. (Creator), Trindade Nascimento, M. (Creator), Adalardo De Oliveira, A. (Creator), Marina Pombo, M. (Creator), Ramirez-Angulo, H. (Creator), Rocha, M. (Creator), Vizoni Scudeller, V. (Creator), Umaña, M. N. (Creator), Van Der Heijden, G. (Creator), Vilanova Torre, E. (Creator), Baider, C. (Creator), Balslev, H. (Creator), Cárdenas, S. (Creator), Casas, L. (Creator), Farfan, W. (Creator), Ferreira, C. (Creator), Linares-Palomino, R. (Creator), Mendoza, C. (Creator), Mesones, I. (Creator), Parada, G. A. (Creator), Torres-Lezama, A. (Creator), Urrego, L. E. (Creator), Villarroel, D. (Creator), Zagt, R. (Creator), Alexiades, M. (Creator), Almeida De Oliveira, E. (Creator), Fortier, R. (Creator), Garcia, K. (Creator), Hernandez, L. (Creator), Palacios, W. (Creator), Pansini, S. (Creator), Pauletto, D. (Creator), Ramirez Arevalo, F. (Creator), Felipe Sampaio, A. (Creator), Valderrama, E. (Creator), Valenzuela Gamarra, L. (Creator), Van Der Sande, M. (Creator), Poorter, L. (Creator) & Ter Steege, H. (Creator), Dryad, 17 Oct 2024

    Dataset

  • Satellite remote sensing can operationalise the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology in the biome-diverse north-east of Brazil

    Ramos, D. (Creator), Phillips, O. L. (Creator), Baker, T. (Creator), Ryan, C. (Creator), Wells, L. H. (Creator), Dexter, K. (Creator), Pennington, R. T. (Creator) & Coutinho, Í. A. C. (Creator), Edinburgh DataShare, 18 Feb 2025

    Dataset