Our EPP undergraduates proudly presenting their EUReCA awards

Three Students Working in EPP Win at EUReCA Competition!

Diversity & Inclusion, NewsLeave a comment

Congratulations to all the Herbert winners at the Exhibit of Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement. Forty three students presented 31 projects at the fair. Three students working in EPP were winners at the competition. Marlo Black, an Animal Science major, won the EUReCA Gold Medal for her work, “A Survey of Domestic Hosts of Cimex lectularius in an Urban Setting.” She was also the first place winner in the Herbert College of Agriculture competition. Her mentors were Dr. Karen Vail and Dr. Becky Trout Fryxell in the Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology. Two students who were in the Herbert College competition of EUReCA won the 3-minute to Win It Video contest. Leah Dunlap (Plant Science) won the juried competition

Closeup of the head to Solenopsis geminata (fire ant)

Joint Evolution of Asexuality and Queen Number in an Ant

News, Publication, Shoemaker NewsLeave a comment

A recent paper in Current Biology by DeWayne Shoemaker and colleagues from the University of Georgia describes a socially polymorphic population of the tropical fire ant, Solenopsis geminata, in which multi-queen colonies produce queens asexually but produce workers sexually via matings with males from the sexually reproducing single-queen social form. Two distinct asexual lineages from multi-queen colonies likely originated from the same sexual single-queen population. Multiple asexual/polygyne genomes are transmitted undiluted in this system, but sterile workers produced with sperm from a sexually-reproducing/monogyne population are necessary for the persistence of these lineages. The intersection of social polymorphism, facultative asexuality, and genetic caste determination marks this population of S. geminata as an embodiment of the diversity of ant reproductive systems and suggests previously

Bee Campus Celebration at Fred Brown Hall Plaza, Friday, April 26th from 12 PM - 2 PM; there will be a ceremony, pollinator planting, and free food

Bee Campus Celebration

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This year, to celebrate National Arbor Day, which every year is held on the last Friday in April, we will celebrate our efforts in becoming a Bee Campus Certified University. There will be a ceremony followed by a pollinator planting event. Be sure to stop by to hear from faculty and students about the important role bees and pollinators play in our community. When: Friday, April 26 at 12:00pm to 2:00pm Where: Fred D. Brown Jr. Residence Hall, Amphitheater Lawn, 1817 Andy Holt Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37996 Please visit website for more information.    

Portrait Dr. Frank Hale

Dr. Frank Hale’s ‘Traveling Elixir of Ornamental Ailments’ comes to UTIA

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This exhibit showcases the variety of insects that damage ornamental plants in landscape and nursery settings in Tennessee. If you want to know what that “bug” on your azaleas is or what borer is killing your dogwoods, Frank will show you what it looks like, as well as offer advice on how to control it. Please drop by to look at his specimens or to ask him specific control questions!! Whatever the reason, drop by on Friday and say “hi”! Presented by: Dr. Frank Hale, Professor, Extension Entomology Specialist (Soil, Plant and Pest Center, Nashville) Location: Hollingsworth Auditorium, Ellington Plant Sciences Building Date & Time: 9:00 am – 2:00 pm, Friday, April 12, 2019 Sponsored by: EPP 410 [Diseases and