Katharina Nargar

Dr. Katharina Nargar serves as Group Leader of Botanical Collections and Senior Research Scientist in Plant Systematics and Evolution at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), based at the Australian Tropical Herbarium in Cairns since 2010. She established the orchid research program and currently leads the Tropical Biodiversity and Evolution Team, focusing on genomic approaches to tropical plant biodiversity.

Her academic credentials include a Diploma in Biology (equivalent to Master's degree) in 2000 and a Doctor of Philosophy (Dr. phil. nat.) in 2007, both from Goethe University Frankfurt, Germany.

Nargar specializes in molecular systematics and evolutionary biology, investigating diversification mechanisms in species-rich tropical plant groups like Australasian Orchidaceae and Bromeliaceae. Her research integrates phylogenomics and conservation genomics to analyze trait evolution, historical biogeography, and hybridization patterns, with direct applications for conserving threatened Australian flora. Key methodologies include high-throughput target enrichment and genotyping-by-sequencing for taxonomic delimitation and genetic diversity assessment.

She received the Women in Science Career Award from CSIRO's Digital National Facilities and Collections (2017-2018) and holds leadership positions including President of the Australasian Systematic Botany Society (2021–present) and Chair of the Consultative Committee for National Collections and Marine Infrastructure (2022–2024).

Nargar has secured substantial research funding as Lead-PI for CSIRO's Future Science Platforms project "Harnessing the versatility of target capture in natural resource management" (2022–2025) and the Australian Orchid Foundation's "Australasian orchid diversification in space and time" (2018–2021). Her grant portfolio includes 14 major projects from 2008–2025 involving Australian Biological Resources Study, Bioplatforms Australia, German Science Foundation, and National Environmental Research Program, covering phylogenomics, species delimitation, and fire ecology impacts.

She directs the Tropical Biodiversity and Evolution Team, which operates advanced genomic pipelines for herbarium specimens and develops conservation strategies for endangered taxa like the Corybas acotiniflorus orchid complex and Diuris orchids, with ongoing work addressing climate change impacts on Australian vegetation.