Orchid bees
Tribe Euglossini
Burying beetle
Nicrophorus orbicollis
Stingless bees
Tetragonisca angustula
Giant mayfly
Hexagenia limbata
Rusty patched bumble bee
Bombus affinis
Goldenrod soldier beetle
Chauliognathus pensylvanicus
Colorado potato beetle
Leptinotarsa decemlineata
Common blue damselfly
Enallagma cyathigerum
Valley carpenter bee
Xylocopa sonorina
Spongy moth
Lymantria dispar
Honeybee
Apis mellifera
Mining bee
Andrena sp.
Squash vine borer
Melittia cucurbitae
Bumblebee mimic robber fly
Laphria thoracica
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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Yosemite Butterflies — An interactive, Digital Field Guide to the Park’s 98 Butterfly Species
Dr. Sean Schoville and Jacki Whisenant recently released Yosemite Butterflies—an interactive, digital field guide to the park’s 98 butterfly species. The app helps provide identification clues and delves into the biology, habitat and conservation status of each species in the mountainous habitat of Yosemite National Park. The app is currently available for Android Devices and can be…
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Did the Arctic Blast Take Out All the Insects?
Did the arctic blast take out all the insects?—Not so fast, says PJ Liesch of the UW Insect Diagnostic Lab. Check out the details in this recent column by UW CALS Science Communicator Kelly April Tyrrell: https://uwmadscience.news.wisc.edu/bugs/the-polar-vortex-should-kill-bugs-right-not-so-much/
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Mosquito Repellent Made from Bacteria in Worms
Research in the Paskewitz lab by Mayur Kajla and colleagues has recently identified a novel mosquito repellent from bacteria. Susan Paskewitz discussed the recently-published findings of this research in this interview with NPR: https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2019/01/16/685701729/bacteria-in-worms-make-a-mosquito-repellent-that-might-beat-deet
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The Precarious Status of the Monarch Population in the western U.S.
Department alumna (Gratton Lab) and current Xerces Society Conservation Biologist, Emma Pelton, was recently interviewed by the new York Times on the precarious status of the Monarch population in the western US: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/09/science/monarch-butterfly-california.html
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The Rise of the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug
The invasive brown marmorated stink bug has become common in some parts of Wisconsin. Extension entomologist, PJ Liesch, discussed the current situation with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2019/01/08/warm-weather-unleashes-smelly-and-destructive-stinkbugs-wisconsin/2507378002/
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.