Research

During my PhD at Cornell, I investigated how the early-season behavior of one herbivore species influences host plant selection and performance in a secondary species. Using experimental manipulations and behavioral observations, I found that prior herbivory alters plant chemistry in ways that facilitate later colonization by other herbivores — a dynamic linked to antagonistic crosstalk between salicylic acid and jasmonic acid defense pathways. These interactions not only affected herbivore fitness but also had downstream consequences for plant reproduction and late-season herbivore pressure, revealing key tradeoffs in multitrophic interactions.

At Rutgers, my postdoctoral work expands on this theme by examining host plant selection in plum curculio (Conotrachelus nenuphar), a major fruit pest. Early findings suggest strong edge effects and spatial aggregation patterns linked to forest proximity, as well as resource competition for oviposition sites. Together, these studies underscore how individual-level decisions — driven by cues and competition — can scale up to affect pest dynamics, crop damage, and potential management strategies.

Another arm of my research focuses on how infection alters herbivore behavior and ecological interactions. At Cornell, I examined the behavioral effects of parasitism in Acalymma vittatum, finding that tachinid fly infection reduced survival, reproduction, and pheromone emission — with implications for host–enemy dynamics and plant signaling. Using GC-MS, I also analyzed volatile changes in parasitized beetles.

At Rutgers, I'm investigating baculovirus resistance in Cydia pomonella (codling moth), a growing issue in apple production. My work explores how viral exposure affects development, behavior (e.g. locomotion, cannibalism), and resistance inheritance. Early results point to developmental delays and fitness tradeoffs in virus-exposed individuals — suggesting potential costs of resistance and behavioral consequences of infection.

I also study how secondary plant metabolites mediate interactions across trophic levels. My dissertation work used metabolomic profiling and statistical modeling to assess how sequestration of cucurbitacins — bitter compounds in cucurbits — influences herbivore defense and parasitoid development. I found that parasitized beetles accumulated significantly less of these compounds, suggesting that parasitism may interfere with detoxification or metabolite transport. Interestingly, parasitoids that successfully eclosed contained trace amounts of cucurbitacins themselves, raising questions about potential nutritional roles or chemical filtering during development.