Faculty and Staff:
Pedro Barbosa, Gerald Brust, Robert Denno, Galen Dively, Dan Gruner, Cerruti Hooks, Conrad Labandeira, David Hawthorne, William Lamp, Charles Mitter, Maile Neel, Margaret Palmer, Michael Raupp, Raymond St. Leger, Sandra Sardanelli, Paula Shrewsbury, Barbara Thorne
Description of Focus Area:
Research expertise in the areas of theoretical and applied ecology is broadly
represented in the Department of Entomology and includes behavioral ecology,
foraging theory, life history evolution, the evolution of social systems,
ecological genetics, chemical ecology, microbial ecology, ecological
stoichiometry,
plant-insect and predator- prey interactions, host-parasite and host-pathogen
relationships, multi-trophic interactions, population dynamics and dispersal,
community ecology, and food-web dynamics. In addition, the faculty maintains
a sincere commitment to the application of ecological theory to biological
control, pest management, habitat restoration, and conservation biology.
Active research programs supported by NSF and USDA are ongoing in both
natural (forests, old-fields, streams, and wetlands) and managed systems
(agriculture, production ornamentals, rural-to-urban landscapes, forest
plantations, and urban habitats).
Maryland has a long and rich tradition of biological control involving
colaborative
projects with federal, state and county agencies and institutions (Maryland
Department of Agriculture, University of Maryland Agricultural Experiment
Station, and Extension Service), and private industry. The first recorded
attempt to introduce a parasitoid of an arthropod pest into the United States
occurred in Maryland in 1881. Subsequent to this initial focus on classical
biological control, current research efforts emphasize the conservation of
natural enemies, augmentative releases, and investigations into the basic
ecology and behavior of natural enemies. Faculty and students are involved
in ecological studies on predators, parasitoids, and pathogens aimed at
understanding
their role in the suppression of arthropod pests.
Concerning pest management at large, a number of faculty are also involved
in the development and implementation of biologically-based controls involving
gene transfer, habitat manipulations, and the use of resistant transgenic
cultivars. Projects include the use of transgenic crops, the isolation of
bioactive substances from microbial symbionts of insects, and the identification
and incorporation of genes from entomopathogenic fungi into plants. Current
extension projects involving biological control focus on the evaluation of
a variety management strategies in which natural enemies are used as control
agents of major pests of agricultural crops, ornamental plants, and turf
grass throughout Maryland.
Recently, several faculty members have extended their ecological expertise
to address other applied problems associated with the consequences of transgenic
crops on non- target organisms, habitat fragmentation and disturbance on
the genetic structure of populations, food-web dynamics and diversity of
arthropod-based communities, and overall biodiversity. Other research programs
are addressing theoretical and practical issues concerning the restoration
of degraded habitats and the conservation of rare and threatened species.
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