Karl J. Niklas

Karl J. Niklas
Born	Karl Joseph Niklas 1948 (age 76–77)
Alma mater	City College of New York (B.Sc.) University of Illinois (Ph.D., 1974)
Known for	Plant biomechanics allometry quantitative paleobotany
Scientific career
Fields	Plant biology paleobotany biomechanics
Institutions	Cornell University
Author abbrev. (botany)	Niklas

Karl Joseph Niklas (born 1948) is an American botanist and paleobotanist who is a Liberty Hyde Bailey Professor Emeritus in the field of Plant Biology at the School of Integrative Plant Science at Cornell University. ^[1] His work focuses on plant biomechanics, allometry and functional morphology. His research in plant evolutionary biology has included studies on early land plant diversification patterns and morphospaces. ^{[2] [3]}

Education

Niklas earned his bachelor's degree at City College of New York. ^[4] He earned his Ph.D. in paleobiology from the University of Illinois in 1974 and completed his post-doctoral research at Birkbeck College as a Fulbright-Hays Fellow. ^[2]

Career

After working as a curator at the New York Botanical Garden, Niklas joined the Cornell University faculty in 1978. He was promoted to full professor in 1985 and appointed Liberty Hyde Bailey Professor in 2000. Niklas served as president of the Botanical Society of America from 2008 to 2009 and as editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Botany from 1995 to 2004. ^[2] He has published over 480 peer-reviewed papers and authored five books on plant biology topics. ^[5] He was elected as a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2015. ^{[6] [7]}

Selected works

Books

• Plant Biomechanics , 1992 ( ISBN   978-0226586311)
• Plant Allometry: The Scaling of Form and Process, 1994 ( ISBN   978-0226580814) ^[8]
• The Evolutionary Biology of Plants, 1997 ( ISBN   978-0226580838) ^[9]
• Plant Physics, 2012 (co-authored with Hanns-Christof Spatz) ( ISBN   978-0226586328)
• Plant Evolution: An Introduction to the History of Life, 2016 ( ISBN   978-0-226-34214-6)
• The Origins of Life: from Abiotic Chemistry to the first Cells. Karl J. Niklas, Thomas G. Owens, and Randy Wayne. 2025

Awards and distinctions

• John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship ^{[2] [10]}
• The Botanical Society of America’s Centennial Medal ^[2]
• Alexander von Humboldt Stiftung prize for senior USA scientists ^[2]
• Elected Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences ^[6]
• Elected Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science

References

1. "Karl Joseph Niklas Faculty Page". Department of Plant Biology, Cornell University. 2007. Retrieved 11 February 2010.
2. "Purpose in Evolution: Participants". John Templeton Foundation. Archived from the original on 12 April 2010. Retrieved 11 February 2010.
3. "Karl J. Niklas | American Academy of Arts and Sciences". www.amacad.org. 2025-07-01. Retrieved 2025-07-19.
4. "Curriculum Vitae" (PDF). Retrieved June 19, 2025.
5. "Karl Niklas | CALS". cals.cornell.edu. Retrieved 2025-05-21.
6. "Karl J. Niklas | American Academy of Arts and Sciences". www.amacad.org. 2025-04-28. Retrieved 2025-06-25.
7. "Karl Joseph Niklas". The Helix Center. Retrieved 2025-08-06.
8. Klinkhamer, Peter G. L. (March 1995). "Plant allometry: The scaling of form and process : by Karl J. Niklas University of Chicago Press, 1994". Trends in Ecology & Evolution. 10 (3): 134. doi:10.1016/S0169-5347(00)89015-1.
9. Yee, Danny (August 1997). "The Evolutionary Biology of Plants, Karl J. Niklas". Danny Yee. Retrieved 11 February 2010.
10. "Karl J. Niklas". John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. Archived from the original on 22 June 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2010.
11. International Plant Names Index. Niklas.