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David Crowder Receives Research Grant

Posted by entomology.office | June 23, 2011

David Crowder, postdoctoral researcher in the Snyder Lab, was the recipient of the Entomological Society of American Foundation 2010 Henry and Sylvia Richardson Research Grant. This award provides research funds to postdoctoral ESA members who have at least one year of promising work experience, are undertaking research in selected areas, and have demonstrated a high level of scholarship. David Crowder is a postdoctoral associate in the Department of Entomology at Washington State University. Dave’s research is on the community ecology of biocontrol systems, examining the relationship between natural enemy biodiversity and natural control of the Colorado potato beetle. The central focus of his research is to determine whether the conservation of beneficial predators is most influenced by in field strategies, such as the planting of wildflower insectaries, or instead is primarily determined by the composition of surrounding habitats at the landscape level, and to determine how predator abundance affects pest control. The results will be used to educate regional growers on conserving beneficial insects through local habitat modification, and/or strategies to engineer whole farms to maximize predator movement among crops. He has more than 20 papers published, some in PNAS, Journal of Animal Ecology and Nature Biotechnology. CAHNRS NEWS week of Oct 18, 24 (11/2010)