Advances in Animal Sciences

While bees and butterflies often feel the public’s love, less conventionally attractive creepy-crawlies like cicadas and Joro spiders are left out in the cold—or, worse, squished. “I think insect conservation is one of the most overlooked areas of conservation biology,” says William Snyder, a professor of entomology in UGA’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. “They’re not huggable; not many species of insects are charismatic. But insects support so many ecosystems.” Why should you care? Well, for starters, bugs are everywhere. Insects alone make up more than half of all the animals on Earth.

Seventeen University of Georgia students received Fulbright offers for the 2024-25 academic year, placing UGA among the top-producing institutions for Fulbright U.S. students. This is the third year in a row — and the seventh time in 12 years — that UGA has been named a top producer of Fulbright U.S. students. Leah Whitmoyer, Fulbright recipient and recent College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences grad, is in Tunisia working on agricultural research projects addressing compost production, well water sampling for salinity and aquifer monitoring.

Supported by a $1.1 million award from the National Science Foundation, University of Georgia entomologists Gaelen Burke and Michael Strand are seeking answers about how parasitic wasp biology has developed to use viruses passed down from parent to offspring to ensure survival. Scientists have been able to trace the relationship between the wasps and their viruses back 100 million years. Today about 55,000 types of wasps carry these types of inherited viruses.