Research interests

Dr. Bowdery's research interests are focussed on the application of plant biogenic silica phytolith analysis to archaeological and other sites through time and from all continents. Her PhD research analysed sediments from the Australian sites of Puritjarra, the Strzelecki Dunefields and.the Nullabor Plain. This provided data on the past presence of economic plants to climate reconstruction in these areas through the last 20,000 years. Recently her interest was focussed on the identification of Rapa Nui extinct palms. Changing palm habitat identification back through time has the potential to extend climate data at this remote weather station in the eastern Pacific Ocean. Currently, material under analysis has been excavated from archaeological sites in Cambodia, Vietnam and an island in the Louisiade Archipelago, PNG.