PULLMAN, Wash. — Washington State University botany doctoral student Shelley McMahon won a top national award for a paper she presented at the American Institute of Biological Science meeting in August.
McMahon received the Botanical Society of America Maynard F. Moseley Award, which recognizes a student paper that advances understanding of the evolution of plant anatomy or morphology.
Her paper discussed her work on a unique structure created by the fusion of petals and stamens in the flowers of selected members of the pea family, including prairie clovers. Titled “Corolla-androecium synorganization in the flowers of the tribe Amorpheae (Fabaceae),” the paper was co-authored with Larry Hufford, director of WSUÃs Marion Ownbey Herbarium.
McMahon holds bachelorÃs and masterÃs degrees in ecology and evolution biology from the University of Arizona. She is a native of Seattle and a graduate of Blanchet High School. McMahon is the curatorial assistant in the herbarium.
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