Timothy P. Spira

Professor



Contact Information

Phone: 864-656-1424
Email: stimoth@clemson.edu

Education

  • Postdoctoral Fellow, Ohio State University, 1984
  • Ph.D. Botany, University of California, 1983
  • M.A. Botany, California State University, 1978
  • B.A. Biology, California State University, 1975

Research Interests

  • I am interested in reproductive and population characteristics of plants from an ecological, evolutionary, and conservation perspective. I also write natural history guides as a mechanism to enhance public awareness and appreciation for natural environments and the plants and animals they harbor.

Selected Publications

  • Spira, T.P. A naturalist’s guide to mountain and piedmont plants of the southeast (In preparation).
  • 2004. Zettler, J.A., M. D. Taylor, C.R. Allen and T.P. Spira. Consequences of forest clear-cuts for native and non-indigenous ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Annals of the Entomological Society of America 97: 513-518.
  • 2003. Haddad, N., D. R. Browne, A. Cunningham, B. Danielson, D. Levey, S. Sargent and T. Spira. Corridor use by diverse taxa. Ecology 84: 609-615.
  • 2002. Madsen, D. L., J. L. Walker, and T. P. Spira. Germination and seed bank studies of Macbridea alba (Lamiaceae). Castanea 67: 280-289.
  • 2001. Spira, T. P. Plant-pollinator interactions: a threatened mutualism with implications for the ecology and management of rare plants. Natural Areas Journal 21: 78-88
  • 2001. Zettler, J. A., T. P. Spira, and C. R. Allen. Ant-seed mutualisms: can red imported fire ants sour the relationship? Biological Conservation 101: 249-253.
  • 2001. Zettler, J. A., T. P. Spira, and C. R. Allen. Yellow jackets (Vespula spp.) disperse Trillium (spp.) seeds in eastern North America. American Midland Naturalist 146: 444-446.
  • 2000. Snow, A. A., T.P. Spira, and H. Liu. Effects of sequential pollination on the success of ‘fast’ and ‘slow’ pollen donors in Hibiscus moscheutos (Malvaceae). American Journal of Botany 87: 1656-1659.
  • 1996. Spira, T. P., A. A. Snow, M. N. Puterbaugh. The timing and effectiveness of sequential pollinations in Hibicus moscheutos. Oecologia 105: 230-235.
  • 1996. Snow, A. A. and T. P. Spira. Pollen-tube competition and male fitness in Hibiscus moscheutos. Evolution 50: 1866-1870.
  • 1996. Snow, A. A., T. P. Spira, R. Simpson, R. A. Klips. The ecology of geitonogamous pollination, pp. 191-216, In Lloyd, D. G. and S. C. H. Barrett (eds.), Floral Biology: Studies on Floral Evolution in Animal-pollinated Plants. Chapman and Hall, NY.
  • 1991. Snow, A. A. and T. P. Spira. Pollen vigor and the potential for sexual selection in plants. Nature 352:796-797.

Recent Courses

  • Field botany
  • Plant ecology
  • Natural History of Wildflowers (for Teachers)

Graduate Students

  • Luanna Prevost, M.S.

Professional Affiliations

  • Association of Southeastern Biologists
  • Southern Appalachian Botanical Society
  • Torrey Botanical Society