Research in the lab is centered on herbivorous insects, especially those that are pests of agriculture.
Part of the interest in these organisms stems from practical considerations.
A growing human population continues to exert pressure on the food supply. Understanding the fundamental biology of pests contributes to agriculture that is both efficient and sustainable. Pest species are also often excellent systems to address fundamental questions in biology. Farming practices can change quickly over a large area, exerting strong selection on pest species and making pests good models to study adaptation to rapid environmental change.
Furthermore, when pests do adapt to new farming methods, farmers are often quick to notice, giving us a rare opportunity to study evolution in natural populations in real time. Agricultural pests are, by definition, abundant and often in readily accessible locations.
Finally, crop pests offer tractable systems to study the relationship between plants and insect herbivores, an interaction that is fundamental to most terrestrial ecosystems.