Born: Unknown, Australia (assumed)
Died: NA
Country most active: Australia
Also known as: NA
This biography has been shared from The Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation, published by the Centre for Transformative Innovation, Swinburne University of Technology, under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Gay McKinnon studied eucalypt genetics at University of Tasmania, focusing particularly on the role of hybridisation in affecting genetic diversity. This included research on Tasmanian members of Eucalyptus subgenus Eucalyptus (the “monocalypts”) and subgenus Symphyomyrtus (especially E. globulus and relatives). Her research highlighted a complicated history of gene exchange, especially regional sharing of chloroplast genomes between morphologically distinctive species.
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Gay McKinnon completed her Bachelor of Science at the University of Queensland, and worked in the fields of biochemistry and molecular biology, before moving to Tasmania to undertake a PhD on eucalypts. This was followed by subsequent positions as a Research Fellow. In 2014 she is pursuing a career as an illustrator of children’s books.