M. R. May

Assessing the Adequacy of Morphological Models used in Palaeobiology

The paper assesses the adequacy of morphological models in phylogenetics using posterior predictive simulations and finds that current Mk model variations perform adequately but no single model is universally best.

Macroevolutionary inference of complex modes of chromosomal speciation in a cosmopolitan plant lineage

The paper introduces a new model to analyze how dysploidy affects diversification in plants, finding two distinct modes of chromosomal evolution and speciation in Carex.

PrioriTree: a utility for improving phylodynamic analyses in BEAST

PrioriTree helps researchers assess prior sensitivity in discrete-geographic phylodynamic models by generating BEAST input files and summarizing outputs for robust Bayesian inference.

Unearthing modes of climatic adaptation in underground storage organs across Liliales

The paper tests adaptive hypotheses about climatic adaptation in underground storage organs across Liliales, finding root tubers are associated with lower temperature seasonality.

Diversification models conflate likelihood and prior, and cannot be compared using conventional model-comparison tools

The paper shows that diversification models conflate likelihood and prior, making them incompatible with standard model-comparison tools.

RevGadgets: an R Package for visualizing Bayesian phylogenetic analyses from RevBayes

RevGadgets provides an R package for creating publication-quality figures from Bayesian phylogenetic analyses in RevBayes and other software.

Phylodynamic insights on the early spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and the efficacy of intervention measures

Phylodynamic analyses reveal that variation in rates of early geographic spread of COVID-19 are correlated with intervention measures.

Inferring the Total-Evidence Timescale of Marattialean Fern Evolution in the Face of Model Sensitivity

This study applies total-evidence dating and fossilized birth-death models to infer the evolutionary timescale of marattialean ferns, finding that tree models significantly influence divergence times and that the clade of extant Marattiales is younger than previously thought.

A Bayesian Approach for Inferring the Impact of a Discrete Character on Rates of Continuous-Character Evolution in the Presence of Background Rate Variation

The paper introduces a Bayesian method to infer how a discrete trait affects continuous-character evolution rates, accounting for background rate variation, and shows it outperforms existing methods in simulations.

A Bayesian Approach for Estimating Branch-Specific Speciation and Extinction Rates

This paper introduces a Bayesian method to estimate branch-specific diversification rates in phylogenies, accounting for extinct lineages and showing increased diversification rates in Old World Monkeys.