Current Position
Doctoral Researcher, Department of Biosciences, Swansea University, 2025 to 2028 (expected)
Supervised by Dr Wendy Harris. Research across soil invertebrate ecology and the environmental fate of veterinary medicines.
Leadership and Scope
- Represented and advocated for thousands of federal agriculture employees nationally as an elected association vice president.
- Worked inside the federal system safeguarding US ports and farms against invasive pests, coordinating across agencies.
- Part of the staff stewarding a national reference collection of millions of insect specimens.
- Founded and built a volunteer expert network serving the public.
Education
- PhD, Biosciences, Swansea University, 2025 to 2028 (expected)
Professional Experience
- Plant Protection and Quarantine Program Staff, USDA APHIS, Washington DC, 2017 to 2025. Supported pest screening and risk assessment for the national quarantine program protecting US ports and farms, with interagency coordination.
- Research Affiliate and Collections, Smithsonian, affiliation current. Curation, cataloguing, and large scale preservation of insect specimens, including a major collection relocation.
- National Vice President, National Association of Agriculture Employees. Represented thousands of federal employees in policy discussion and labor negotiation.
- Director of Outreach, Círculo de Puerto Rico, current.
- Entomological Consultant, Film and Television, 2013 to present.
- Technical Editor, Southwestern Entomologist.
Research Focus
- Insect and arachnid taxonomy, curation, and collection management.
- Integrated pest management and the role of cover crops in arthropod communities.
- Soil invertebrate ecology and the environmental fate of veterinary medicines.
- Microscopy and imaging methods for specimen analysis.
Selected Publications
- The potential of Chloridea virescens to become established outside its native range. Southwestern Entomologist, 50(4):1637 to 1658, 2025.
- Survivorship of Chloridea virescens under Storage and Transportation. Southwestern Entomologist, 49(4):1494 to 1506, 2024.
- A Compelling Case for the Rediscovery of C V Riley's Insect Collection Boxes. American Entomologist, 68(3), 2022.
- Can Winter Cover Crop Termination Practices Impact Weed Suppression, Soil Moisture, and Yield in No-Till Soybean. Crop Protection, 116, 2019.
- Improving Risk Assessment of Noctuid Pests at North American Ports and Farms. Annals of the Entomological Society of America, 2019.
- The Effect of Barley Cover Crop Residue and Herbicide Management on the Foliar Arthropod Community in No-Till Soybeans. Agronomy, 8(6):87, 2018.
- Can Row Spacing Influence Arthropod Communities in Soybean? Implications for Early and Late Planting. Environmental Entomology, 44(3):557 to 561, 2015.
Selected Presentations
- The Invasive Threat of Imported Invertebrate Pets. Entomological Society of Washington, 2024.
- Amateur Ant Hobbyists and Their Contributions to Science. Entomological Society of America, 2020.
- Impact of Chemical and Mechanical Cover Crop Termination Practices on Soybean Arthropods. Harford County Midwinter Agronomy Meeting, 2016.
- XIII European Congress of Entomology, Tours, 2026.
Outreach and Science Communication
- Founder, the Ommatidium Project, a volunteer expert network connecting the public to entomologists.
- Contributor, EntoBites.
- Natural history science communication on Bluesky with detailed image descriptions on every post.
- Classroom outreach bringing live insects to schoolchildren to spark curiosity about the natural world.
- Worked hands-on with farmers to develop and adopt sustainable agriculture practices.
- Mentoring students entering entomology.
- Designed and delivered workshops for academic, farming, and community audiences.
Technical Skills
- Light and electron microscopy, DIC microscopy, slide preparation, and specimen mounting, including revived micro glassware and gum chloral methods.
- Statistical modelling and data analysis in R and JMP, including phylogenetics.
- UAV mapping for ecological survey.
Languages
- English, fluent
- Spanish, native
- French, working familiarity
- Hindi, familiar