| I am a Ph.D. student interested in the community ecology of grasshoppers. Grasshopper diversity can at times be stunning, especially considering that the vast majority of species are generalist herbivores and are competing for the same plant resources. However, different coexisting, and even closely related species have different nutritional needs which are satisfied by feeding on different proportions of various suboptimal plants resources. This tradeoff can be represented and investigated using the ‘Geometric Framework’. I hope to elucidate how these different nutritional targets relate to actual inter-specific interactions both in the lab and in the field as well as how the presence of predators affects reaching nutritional targets, and ultimately community structure. My love of insects has been a lifelong hobby, which has recently begun to focus on the ecology of orthopteroid insects. I maintain a large personal collection (filling over 30 insect drawers) and enjoy being outdoors and travelling. | |
