New UNM Herbarium curator continues legacy of women leading botanical discovery

Diana Gamba, an assistant professor of biology at The University of New Mexico, brings extensive international research experience from Colombia to the Andes, has been selected as the herbarium curator for UNM's Museum of Southwestern Biology.

Originally from Colombia, Gamba recently completed a five-year postdoctoral fellowship at Pennsylvania State University. In 2020, she earned a Ph.D. in Ecology, Evolution and Systematics from the University of Missouri-St. Louis, holds a master's degree with honors from San Francisco State University and an undergraduate degree in biology from Universidad del Valle in Cali, Colombia. Gamba was drawn to New Mexico by the state's remarkable biodiversity, finding research opportunities from Valles Caldera to the Gila Wilderness.

Botany is a field that has traditionally been more inclusive of women than other scientific disciplines, according to Gamba. She draws particular inspiration from female botanists like Alice Eastwood, who not only created the California Academy of Sciences' botanical collection, but also secured its specimens from the fires that followed San Francisco's 1906 earthquake.

Gamba's own research focuses on local plant adaptations, particularly how species respond to environmental pressures within the ranges in which they are found both as natives and invasives.

One current interest includes gallant soldier (Galinsoga parviflora also known as quickweed) in the Gila region, a South American plant that appears in traditional cuisines and was introduced to Europe for the same purpose. The invasive plant also appears in very remote areas of New Mexico and likely was introduced to the state by Spanish colonizers.

Gamba's field experience spans from the Andes in Ecuador, where she once encountered an Andean bear cub, to the diverse ecosystems now surrounding her in the Southwest. For Gamba, this combination of research, education and public engagement represents botany at its most impactful.

For more information, visit MSB Herbarium.