Mason's Plant-Insect Laboratory

Members of our laboratory investigate interactions between terrestrial plants and their many herbivores to understand how those interactions structure the broader ecological communities in which they are embedded.  We undertake manipulative field experiments, often in combination with laboratory chemical analyses, to determine how insects respond to or alter plants, and then examine subsequent changes in plant and/or insect growth, survival, phenology, species interactions, or biological diversity.  In addition, we apply hypotheses regarding community structure to the investigation of other aspects of integrative biology, including field experiments in below-ground communities, forensic entomology, predator-prey interactions, and endangered species conservation.