2013-2014 Awardee

Dr. Mike Sharkey    2013-14 Visiting Systematist

For more information on Dr. Sharkey’s research, please visit his lab website.

We are pleased to announce that the first recipient of the UAIC Visiting Arthropod Systematist Award is Dr. Michael Sharkey.  Dr. Sharkey will visit us from November 2013 through March 2014 during his sabbatical leave from the University of Kentucky’s Department of Entomology. 

During his sabbatical at the UAIC he will undertake a taxonomic revision of the species of Agathidinae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) in Arizona and adjacent regions. His revision will be based on museum specimens in the UAIC as well as other insect museums throughout the Southwest.  He also plans to collect extensively with malaise traps and sort the braconids and other parasitoid Hymenoptera from these samples as well as other malaise trap samples already collected and housed in the UAIC. 

In addition to undertaking this revision, Dr. Sharkey has agreed to identify many Hymenoptera in our collection, including all unsorted Braconidae to genus (except for members of Microgastrinae) and all miscellaneous Hymenoptera to family (as time allows). He will produce a report on our parasitoid Hymenoptera holdings and distribute this to other workers to facilitate loan requests. 

During his visit he will present a research talk in the GIDP in Entomology and Insect Science Seminar Series on December 5, 2013.