Yolande Dalpé is a former Research Scientist with

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC; sometimes Ag-Canada; french: Agriculture et Agroalimentaire Canada)''Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada'' is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of Agriculture ...

. She became the first mycologist in Ottawa to study the taxonomy of mycorrhizal fungi. Her research focuses on developing new information on

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

phylogeny A phylogenetic tree (also phylogeny or evolutionary tree Felsenstein J. (2004). ''Inferring Phylogenies'' Sinauer Associates: Sunderland, MA.) is a branching diagram or a tree showing the evolutionary relationships among various biological spec ...

, distribution and biology of

fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...

, including systematic research related to

biosecurity Biosecurity refers to measures aimed at preventing the introduction and/or spread of harmful organisms (e.g. viruses, bacteria, etc.) to animals and plants in order to minimize the risk of transmission of infectious disease. In agriculture, thes ...

/alien

invasive species An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species ad ...

as well as species involved in the development of

bioproducts Bioproducts or bio-based products are materials, chemicals and energy derived from renewable biological resources. Bioresources Biological resources include agriculture, forestry, and biologically-derived waste, and there are many other renewable ...

. She was awarded the Lawson Medal by the

Canadian Botanical Association Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

for her "cumulative, lifetime contributions to Canadian

botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

, for the research she has performed in

mycology Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their genetic and biochemical properties, their taxonomy and their use to humans, including as a source for tinder, traditional medicine, food, and entheogens, as ...

, and has been recognized nationally and internationally."

Biography

Dalpé was born in

Waterloo, Quebec Waterloo ( 2021 population 4,920) is a city in the Canadian province of Quebec. It is included in La Haute-Yamaska Regional County Municipality, in the administrative area of Estrie. Completely encircled by the township of Shefford, this resident ...

in 1948.Khasa, Damase, Yves Piché and Andrew P. Coughlan (Eds.) 2009
Advances in Mycorrhizal Science and Technology
National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, Ont., p. iii In 1989 she received her Doctorate of Science (D.Sc.) in the Physiology of Fungi from

Université Paul-Sabatier Paul Sabatier University (''Université Paul Sabatier'', UPS, also known as Toulouse III) is a French public university, in the Academy of Toulouse. It is one of the several successor universities of the University of Toulouse. Toulouse III was ...

Toulouse, France Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Pari ...

. After completing her D.Sc. Dalpé was hired as a research scientist at

(AAFC) in 1981.

Career

Dalpé last worked as the program leader of the

section at the Ottawa Research and Development Centre in

Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

. Her current projects include: *Fungi: Develop new information on taxonomy, phylogeny, distribution and biology of fungi, including systematic research related to biosecurity/alien invasive species as well as species involved in the development of bioproducts. *Build and maintain reference collections and databases of fungi: Glomeromycota in vitro Collection (GINCO); AAFC Vascular Plant Herbarium (DAO) and National Mycological Herbarium (DAOM). Support for Canadian Collection of Fungal Cultures (CCFC). *Development of phylogenomics capability, rapid detection and identification tools. *Accurate identification, information and related training for scientific research in taxonomy, fungi propagation and biodiversity protection. Dalpé is an associate editor of the journal Botany published by the

National Research Council of Canada The National Research Council Canada (NRC; french: Conseil national de recherches Canada) is the primary national agency of the Government of Canada dedicated to science and technology research & development. It is the largest federal research ...

. She is also an adjunct professor associated with the Quebec Centre for Biodiversity Science, a network that fosters and promotes a research and training program in biodiversity science. She has trained numerous scientists and graduate students in the identification and taxonomy of

arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi An arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) (plural ''mycorrhizae'', a.k.a. ''endomycorrhiza'') is a type of mycorrhiza in which the symbiont fungus (''AM fungi'', or AMF) penetrates the cortical cells of the roots of a vascular plant forming arbuscules. (N ...

and has published over 130 scientific papers. Dalpé is a founding member of the International

Mycorrhiza A mycorrhiza (from Greek μύκης ', "fungus", and ῥίζα ', "root"; pl. mycorrhizae, mycorrhiza or mycorrhizas) is a symbiotic association between a fungus and a plant. The term mycorrhiza refers to the role of the fungus in the plant ...

Society (IMS), a scientific society involved in the advancement of education, research and development in the area of mycorrhizal symbiosis between plants and specialized soil fungi. She is a member of IMS' Board of Directors and is also the editor of Mycorrhiza, the official scientific journal of the society. Dalpé is an administrator of an amateur mycologist association for the Outaouais, Quebec region called Mycologues Amateurs de l'Outaouais (MAO). MAO is dedicated to the dissemination of knowledge in mycology, picking wild mushrooms, their identification and their consumption. Dalpé is also the editor of MAO's newsletter. She is the "person in charge" of the Glomeromycota In vitro Collection Canada (GINCO-CAN) an organization that "shares the biological material of its collection and related informations as well as its experience and know-how in the field of

research to the benefit of its partners and clients in the scientific and industrial sectors."

Honours and awards

In 2013 Dalpé received the Lawson Medal by the Canadian Botanical Association for her "cumulative, lifetime contributions to Canadian botany, for the research she has performed in mycology, and has been recognized nationally and internationally."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dalpé, Yolande Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Canadian physiologists 1948 births Living people Scientists from Quebec 20th-century Canadian scientists 21st-century Canadian scientists Paul Sabatier University alumni 20th-century Canadian women scientists