Orchid bees
Tribe Euglossini
Photo: Tony Shen
Burying beetle
Nicrophorus orbicollis
Photo: Tony Shen
Stingless bees
Tetragonisca angustula
Photo: Tony Shen
Giant mayfly
Hexagenia limbata
Photo: Tony Shen
Rusty patched bumble bee
Bombus affinis
Photo: Jeremy Hemberger
Goldenrod soldier beetle
Chauliognathus pensylvanicus
Photo: Tony Shen
Colorado potato beetle
Leptinotarsa decemlineata
Photo: Ben Bradford
Common blue damselfly
Enallagma cyathigerum
Photo: Jeremy Hemberger
Valley carpenter bee
Xylocopa sonorina
Photo: Jeremy Hemberger
Spongy moth
Lymantria dispar
Photo: Jeremy Hemberger
Honeybee
Apis mellifera
Photo: Ben Bradford
Mining bee
Andrena sp.
Photo: Ben Bradford
Squash vine borer
Melittia cucurbitae
Photo: Jeremy Hemberger
Bumblebee mimic robber fly
Laphria thoracica
Photo: Jeremy Hemberger
Welcome to the Department of Entomology!
The Department of Entomology at the University of Wisconsin – Madison is a world-class graduate training and research institution committed to advancing research in insect biology in both basic and applied contexts. We offer MS and Ph.D. degrees in Entomology and two undergraduate majors (Entomology & Global Health). Our faculty and staff members along with our graduate students, postdoctoral associates, affiliated and emeritus professors offer a dynamic and interdisciplinary research and teaching environment to prepare students for a future in entomology.
The Department is housed in Russell Laboratories and makes extensive use of campus greenhouse facilities and the agricultural research stations located throughout the state for research, outreach and educational purposes. Russell Labs houses three departments: Entomology, Forest and Wildlife Ecology, and Plant Pathology. The building is centrally located on the UW-Madison campus making it ideal for collaborative work with other departments.
Values such as inclusion, integrity, community, and respect are an integral part of department culture and official code of conduct.
Quick Links
Department News
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UW Entomology Supports Wisconsin Cranberry Growers
Dr. Shane Foye and Dr. Shawn Steffan were recently featured in Fruit Growers News for their work on entomopathogenic nematodes in Wisconsin cranberry marshes. Dr. Foye recently completed his Ph.D. work studying parasitic nematodes, which he identified and used as biological controls to successfully reduce pest numbers in cranberry cropping systems.
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The Way We Eat: Bees, Citizen Science, and Colony Collapse Disorder
Pollinator researchers Katy Thostenson and Dr. Claudio Gratton recently joined Jonah Chester on WORT 89.9 Madison to discuss the status of bees. They also discuss their WiBee app—a citizen science project—to track and assess bee health in Wisconsin.
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What’s Really Killing Monarch Butterflies?
Monarch butterfly expert, Dr. Karen Oberhauser, was featured in this article in Scientific American discussing the threats facing monarch butterflies.
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Bumble Bees and Climate Chaos
Bumble bees face perilous times due to changing climate, land-use changes, and other factors. Dr. Claudio Gratton was featured in a video clip in this National Geographic article on the challenges that bumble bee face.
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Controlling Crop Pests with RNA
New pest control technologies, including RNA-based products, offer novel ways of targeting important crop pests while reducing conventional pesticide inputs. Vegetable entomologist Dr. Russ Groves was recently interviewed about these new technologies being developed and how they could change modern farming.
Meaningful Research
Advancing research in insect biology in both basic and applied contexts.
Top-notch Instruction
Interdisciplinary instruction to inform students, collaborators, and the community.
Far-reaching Impact
Embodying the Wisconsin Idea, making the boundaries of our work the boundaries of the Wisconsin and beyond.
Vision
We focus on high-impact science that leverages our collective expertise on arthropod biology to solve problems in agriculture, the environment, and human health.