Mailing Address: Department of Biology  Virginia Commonwealth University 1000 West Cary Street Richmond, Virginia 23284-2012 USA  Voice: 804-828-0103  Fax: 804-828-0503  e-mail: kmkester@saturn.vcu.edu

Karen M. Kester, Ph.D.  Department of Biology  Virginia Commonwealth University

Physical Location: Trani Life Sciences Center Room 027 1000 West Cary Street Richmond, Virginia 23284

Research
 

My interests in insect ecology and behavior are broad. One major research area is the evolutionary and behavioral ecology of insect parasitoids. Another is the use of insects as environmental biosensors. My approach to research is integrative and involves a variety of experimental approaches and techniques. I often work in collaboration with other scientists.  Much of my basic work is concerned with tritrophic interactions involving the insect parasitoid, Cotesia congregata (Say) (Braconidae), its hosts, Manduca sexta L. ("tobacco hornworm") and other caterpillars in the family Sphingidae, as well as the food plants on which these hosts feed. Most sphingid caterpillars are restricted to feeding on one or a few plant families, so to find and develop in these different caterpillar species, C. congregata must adapt to a variety of plant chemicals. Also, like most parasitoids, C. congregata can learn to identify plant chemicals associated with their hosts.  My ongoing and recently completed studies involving insect parasitoids include: the effects of postemergence and sequential learning experiences on host location and ovipositional decisions, the role of learning in mediating microevolutionary changes in parasitoid populations, and the role of plants in structuring parasitoid populations. These studies integrate classical field and laboratory experiments with newer approaches. Individual-based simulation modeling is used to integrate individual behavior (including learning) with processes at the population level, and to generate testable hypotheses. Newly identified microsatellite DNA markers for C. congregata will be used to test these hypotheses.

Cotesia congregata (Say)     Tobacco hornworm parasitized by C. congregata Catalpa sphinx larva parasitized by C. congregata

A new collaborative project is concerned with the use of endemic insect populations as environmental biomonitors. As insects engage in their daily activities, they gather information about biological or chemical agents of human importance. By relating what is known about their behavior and ecology, selected insect species can be employed as reconnaissance agents and predictors of biohazard sources.

Courses
 

	Intro. to Biological Sciences II	BIOL 152	(undergraduate Biology majors)
	Entomology	BIOL 309	(undergraduate Biology majors)
	Evolution and Speciation	BIOL 522	(graduate and senior Biology majors)
	Seminar in Ecology	BIOL 690	(graduate)

Biology Colloquiium

BIOL 698

(graduate) open to the public

 

Curriculum Vitae

Education

University of Maryland - College Park	Ph.D., 1991	Entomology (minor: Biosatitsics)
Louisiana State University	M.S., 1983	Entomology
Louisiana State University	B.S., 1980	Natural Sciences

Professional Positions

Virginia Commonwealth University, Dept. of Biology	1997-present	Assistant Professor
University of Arizona,  Center for Insect Science and Dept. of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology	1995-1997	NIH Research Fellow,  Visiting Research Scientist
University of California - Santa Cruz Dept. of Biology	1991-1995	Postdoctoral Researcher,  Instructor

Professional Affiliations
American Association for the Advancement of Science, Animal Behavior Society, Ecological Society of America, Entomological Society of America, Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society, Sigma Xi Scientific Research Society, Society of Integrative and Comparative Biology.
 

Selected Publications

Lentz, A and KM Kester 2002. Postemergence experience affects sex ratio allocations of the gregarious parasitoid, Cotesia congregata (Say). Journal of. Insect Behavior (in press)

Jensen, MK, BL Brown, M Kankaare and KM Kester. 2002. Characterization of microsatellite loci in the insect parasitoid, Cotesia congregata (Say). Molecular Ecology Notes 2:346-348.

Kester, KM, SC Peterson , FE Hanson, DM Jackson and RF Severson. 2002. The roles of nicotine and natural enemies in determining larval feeding site distributions of Manduca sexta L. and Manduca quinquemacula (Haworth) on tobacco. Chemoecology12:1-10.

Anderson, JE, SR Webb, RL Fischer, KM Kester and BL Brown. 2001. Baseline and in vivo photoluminescence of endospore material using the parasitoid wasp C. congregata. Applied Spectroscopy 55:684-689.

Anderson, JE, SR Webb, R Fischer, KM Kester and C Smith. 2001. Comparative intrinsic and enhanced total photoluminescence of endospore material . IN Buttenbach, S. (ed.) Proceedings of the Society of Photo-Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE) International Symposium on Environmental and Industrial Sensing, Newton, MA.

Kester, K and J Tuttle. 1999. First reported host of Rhynochophion flammipennis is Manduca sexta. Southwestern Naturalist 44: 87-88.

DM Jackson & Kester, KM. 1996. Effects of diet on longevity and fecundity of the spined stilt bug, Jalysus wickhamii. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata. 80: 421-425.

Kester, KM and DM Jackson. 1996. When good bugs go bad: Intraguild predation by the spined stilt bug, Jalysus wickhami on parasitoid, Cotesia congregata. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata 81:271-276.

Fox, LR, KM Kester and J Eisenbach. 1996. Direct and indirect responses of parasitoids to plants: Sex ratio, plant quality and herbivore diet breadth. Entomologia et Experimentalis et Applicata 80:289-292.

Kester, KM and P.Barbosa. 1994. Behavioral responses to host foodplants of two populations of the insect parasitoid, Cotesia congregata (Say). Oecologia 99:151-157.

Kester, KM and P Barbosa. 1991. Behavioral and ecological constraints imposed by plants on insect parasitoids: Implications for biological control. Biological Control: Theory and Applications 1:94-106.

Kester, KM and P Barbosa. 1991. Post-emergence learning in the insect parasitoid, Cotesia congregata (Say). Journal of Insect Behavior 4:727-742.

Kester, KM and P Barbosa. 1991. Effects of post-emergence experience on searching and landing responses to plants in the insect parasitoid, Cotesia congregata (Say). Journal of Insect Behavior 5:301-320.