I’m Héctor Palma, a Colombian geologist and paleobotanist. During my bachelor’s degree in geology, I developed a keen interest in paleontology and stratigraphy. I have worked at the Paleontological Museum of Villa de Leyva, where my fascination with fossil plants began to take root. My current research is centered around the Lower Cretaceous flora of Colombia, primarily focusing on studying conifers and other gymnosperms from the La Paja Formation. I aim to comprehensively understand the diversity and changes in Lower Cretaceous floras at lower latitudes.
Education
PhD in Biological Sciences. 2024 –
University of Illinois Chicago
Director: Ph.D. Roberta Mason-Gamer
Codirector: Ph.D. Fabiany Herrera
Master in Science – Biology. 2021 – 2023
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá
Thesis: Palaeodiversity of the fossil flora from the La Paja Formation, Lower Cretaceous of Colombia
Advisor: Ph.D. Fabiany Herrera
Co-advisor: M.Sc. Petter Lowy
Geology. 2014 – 2020
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá
Final degree work: First report of a conifer from the Aptian of Vélez, Santander, taphonomic considerations
Advisor: Ph.D. María Páramo
Co-advisor: Ph.D. Fabiany Herrera
Professional experience
- Predoctoral Fellowship, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI), “A tree fern from the Early Cretaceous La Paja Formation, Colombia” (Feb 2024 – Jan 2025)
- Organizing committee 2nd Colombian Paleontology Congress (2023)
- Project “Un Viaje con la Ciencia y Tecnología” Science Faculty, Universidad Nacional de Colombia (2021 – 2023)
- Paleontological Museum of Villa de Leyva, Science Faculty, Universidad Nacional de Colombia (2017 – 2023)
- Hydrocarbons Department, Colombian Geological Survey (2020)
- Organizing committee 1st Colombian Paleontology Congress (2020)
Awards/Grands
- Science Visiting Scholarship, Field Museum of Natural History (2023)
Affiliations
- Graduate student, University of Illinois Chicago, Biological Sciences (2024 – current)
- Scientific affiliate, Field Museum of Natural History (2024 – current)
- Paleontología Neotropical Tradicional y Molecular, Universidad del Rosario (2024 – current)
- Grupo de Investigación en Paleobiología e Historia Natural, Universidad Nacional de Colombia (2020 – current)
Extracurricular activities
- Member and research coordinator of the research group Grupo de Investigación en Paleobiología e Historia Natural (Paleobiological and Natural History Research Group) (2020 – present)
- Coordinator and founder of the paleontological student organization Semillero de Paleobiología (Fostering Paleobiology Students), Universidad Nacional de Colombia (2018 – 2019)
