Next Week! Join us for a meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club
Date: Tuesday, December 12th, 7:30 PM EST
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Title: “Insects in the Anthropocene”
Speaker: Yui Suzuki (Wellesley College)
Summary: How will organisms fare in the 21st century
as they face extreme environmental conditions and environmental
degradation? Developmental plasticity is the ability of an organism to
give rise to two or more distinct phenotypes in the face of
environmental changes. Developmental plasticity is thought to offer new
ways for evolution to shape an organism’s phenotype, but the mechanism
by which this happens remains poorly studied. A classic example of
developmental plasticity that evolves through natural selection is
called a polyphenism where the same individual develops into two or more
alternative phenotypes depending on the environment. In our lab, we
have artificially selected for a polyphenism using temperature stress to
generate a novel phenotype. My talk will focus on my lab’s latest
findings on how our larvae respond to thermal stress and how
selection might stabilize new phenotypes. In addition to sharing some of
the challenges we have faced while conducting the study and how we
solved these issues, I will also share some anecdotal observations of
insects in Japan.
NOTICE: We will be holding hybrid meetings to accommodate COVID-19 precautions and audience members from around the world.
For those able to attend,
we will have an informal dinner at 6:00 pm at Cambridge Common
Restaurant with the speaker, followed by our formal meeting (7:30 - 9:00
pm) in room MCZ101 of the Museum of Comparative Zoology (there will be
signs to help direct). The meeting will begin with club announcements,
followed by a 60-minute presentation by the invited speaker and Q&A.
Membership is open to amateur and professional entomologists. Welcome!