We aim to understand the evolution of traits that drive community assembly in ant-centric symbiotic species networks. We accomplish this by (1) determining the chemical communication processes that mediate both antagonistic and cooperative symbiotic interactions, (2) identifying the evolutionary transitions of traits of interest within ant genera, and (3) determining the genetic underpinnings of adaptive traits.
Congratulations to Dr. Rachelle Adams on her promotion to Associate Professor!
Alissa Geisse, Ph.D. student, was awarded a $1000 Critical Difference Professional Development Grant by The Women’s Place. These funds will assist Alissa towards attending conferences, supporting research and networking activities. Congratulations!
Rileigh Dunn, EEOB undergraduate researcher, has been awarded participation in the Undergraduate Research and Apprenticeship Program (URAP) for Summer 2023 to investigate the population dynamics of Sericomyrmex amabilis.
We are happy to announce that Jacob Gerken has been accepted into the Fall 2023 class for medical school at The University of Toledo, College of Medicine and Life Sciences.
We are excited to announce that Aryel Camero Goes from Universidade Estadual Paulista, Brazil, will be joining the Adams Megalomyrmex Ant Lab as a PhD student this summer.
We are excited to announce that Blake Bringhurst from The University of Texas at Tyler will be joining the Adams Megalomyrmex Ant Lab as a PhD student this summer.
WWe are happy to announce that Cecilia Yeckley was accepted to Colorado State University's Professional Science Master's program for Zoo, Aquarium and Animal Shelter Management for this Fall 2023.
On 6 April 2023, Juno Thomas presented their research poster at the Spring 2023 OSU Undergraduate Research Festival. Titled “The Unexplored Natural History of Fungus-Growing Ants: Collecting Cadavers”. Contributions by Livia Pires do Prado, Alissa Geisse, Gerald Carter, Stephanie Murray & Rachelle M. M. Adams were noted.
Dr. Rachelle Adams was awarded the 2022-2023 ASC Early-Career Faculty Excellence Award. This award recognizes outstanding performance in all three areas of research, teaching and service.
We are happy to announce that Alison Jennings was admitted to The Pennsylvania State University’s Entomology M.S. program, beginning Fall 2023. She will be advised by Dr. Jared G. Ali, studying chemical ecology of multitrophic interactions.
Penn State Center for Chemical Ecology
Congratulations to Alison Jennings for being a Student Competition Winner at the 2022 ESA Annual Conference in Vancouver, Canada!
Kyle Sozanski, Alissa Giesse and Alison Jennings head off to the Annual ESA Conference in Vancouver, Canada, to give presentations of their research.
Samantha Baxter’s article, “The Coevolutionary Arms Race: Fungus-Growing Ants and Social Parasites”, illuminates the research interests of Dr. Rachelle Adams. Dr. Adams explores the evolutionary significance of social parasites and their ongoing selection pressure upon fungus-growing ants, the genus Megalomyrmex.
Welcome Aron Oliveras! Aron will be joining our lab this summer to assist with ecological fieldwork in Panama.
Welcome John Pyles, our new lab manager and research assistant!
Our lab manager Stephanie Murray has been accepted to a PhD program with Dr. Chelse Prather at the University of Dayton, OH. She will begin her new position this summer after finishing fieldwork in Panama!
Alissa Geisse was awarded the STRI pre-doctoral student fellowship (1-year paid research in Panama).
Stephanie Murray was awarded OSU's Staff Career Development Grant to assist in teaching the undergrad course Tropical Field Ecology in Panama this summer. ($1088)
Alissa Geisse awarded Smithsonian Short-Term Fellowship (a summer of covered expenses and stipend in Panama).
NSF Career Grant awarded to the Adams Mega Ant Lab! Title: Integrative Systematics: Taxonomy and Evolution of Megalomyrmex Ants and Their Venom. Division: Division of Environmental Biology. We were funded five years to work on changes in ant venom and species diversification over time.
Lab Alum Cody Cardenas begins PhD on beetle phylogenetics at Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle in Geneva, Switzerland.
Alissa Geisse awarded Alumni Graduate Grant for Research and Scholarship ($2,955).
First NSF grant awarded to the Mega Ant Lab!
Title: Illumination of behavior leading to host exploitation by a context-dependent mutualist
Division of Integrative Organismal Systems: Symbiosis Infection & Immunity and Animal Behavior
We are funded for three years to work on the Sericomyrmex amabilis and Megalomyrmex symmetochus system in Central America.
Alissa Geisse awarded Lewis and Clark Field Expedition Grant.
Adams Lab collects US native thief ants (e.g., Solenopsis molesta), fungus-growing ant (Trachymyrmex septentrionalis), and sclerotia of a fungal termite symbiont ("termite balls") in Southern Ohio.
Alissa Geisse passed her PhD candidacy exams.
Kyle Sozanski & Alissa Geisse awarded Tinker Foundation Field Research Grant.
Reportage from the field [TBEE 2019]: Can vampire bats recognize each other through echolocation calls?
Author: Victoria A. Sadowski
Reportage from the field [TBEE 2019]: Insect Olfaction in the Rainforests of Panama
Author: Imran Razik
Kendall King, OSU graduate student, attempts to develop a method for olfaction inhibition among insects.
Reportage from the field [TBEE 2019]: Looking Through the Lens: A Quest to Identify the Parasitism Rate of an Ant
Author: Bridget Brown
Undergraduate researcher, David Girbino, works to find a method to identify parasitism in the Sericomyrmex amabilis ants. With several trials conducted, David is already seeing promising patterns in the behavior of his ants. Results could save hours of work for researchers working with this species.
Reportage from the field [TBEE 2019]: Changing their tune: Do fungus-growing ant species stridulate differently?
Author: Amy Luo
Ohio State student Matt Fisher is studying sounds created by stridulating fungus-growing ants in Panama.
Reportage from the field [TBEE 2019]: Bats prefer the lights out!
Author: Matthew Fisher
Undergraduate student from Ohio State’s Tropical Behavior, Ecology, and Evolution course is researching the effects that artificial light has on Panamanian Bat behavior.
Reportage from the field [TBEE 2019]: Fungus vs. Ants: How do ants combat diseases?
Author: Antwan Tate
OSU Graduate student Stephanie Murray examines how a recently discovered ant species combats fungal infections.
Reportage from the field [TBEE 2019]: Social Grooming and Urinary Oxytocin in the Common Vampire Bat, Desmodus rotundus
Author: Julian Roberts
OSU Graduate Student, Imran Razik, Seeks to Explain the Mechanisms Behind Social Grooming in the Common Vampire Bat.
Reportage from the field [TBEE 2019]: Boot’s on the Ground, Hunting for Antswers
Author: Kendall King
PhD student Matt Boot investigates the complex relationship between fungus-farming ants, their parasites, and generalist raider ants.
Reportage from the field [TBEE 2019]: Batty for Real-Estate: Bat Behavior Inside and Outside the Roost
Author: Matt Boot
Bridget Brown, OSU graduate student, launches her project on bat roosting behavior in Gamboa, Panama.
Reportage from the field [TBEE 2019]: The Search for the Shimmering Ant Species,
Megalomyrmex milenae
Author: Marissa Moran
Ohio State sophomore Julian Roberts is using her time in Panama to study Megalomyrmex milenae, a recently discovered species of ant. During the field season for the Tropical Behavioral Ecology and Evolution course, Julian will be analyzing the distribution of colonies and studying patterns of worker aggression and nest distributions. Here’s to a successful field season!
Reportage from the field [TBEE 2019]: Attine Agriculturalists: Searching for fungus-gardening ants in the Panamanian Rainforest
Author: David Girbino
OSU grad student Victoria Sadowski is searching for a cryptic species of fungus-gardening ant in the Panamanian rainforest: find out why!
Rachelle was invited to give a departmental seminar at Texas A&M Entomology and had a tremendous time meeting faculty and students.
The semester has started with a full lab of enthusiastic undergraduate researchers (7 in total + our research intern Mazie) and two visitors from Reed Johnson's lab (Stephanie and Colin). Welcome to all! A game night is in order!
The Adams Lab was happy to host Jeremy Yoder. He gave a fantastic departmental seminar about his research and then led an interesting discussion on diversity in STEM. Thank you Jeremy!
Cody presented his research at the Society for Advancing Chicanos/Hispanics Native Americans in Science 2018 National Diversity in STEM Conference in Texas.
Andrew, Victoria and Amy presented their work at the Second Annual Three Rivers Evolution Event conference in Pittsburg. Well done everyone!
Parasitic manipulations review is out and is open access!
de Bekker C, Will I, Das B, Adams RMM (2018) The ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) and their parasites: effects of parasitic manipulations and host responses on ant behavioral ecology. Myrmecological News 28: 1-24.
The Adams Lab warmly welcomes Victoria as a new graduate student!
Rachelle heads to Brazil to present Matt's research on the fine scale genetic variation of the fungus-farming ant Sericomyrmex amabilis and Mazie's poster on venom function.
Mazie presents her poster on the function of alkaloid venom of M. symmetochus at Animal Behavior. Beautiful poster as usual! Great job Mazie!
End of a great field season! Great work Matt and Cody!
Congratulations to Cody for being awarded $1000 from the OSU Global Gateway Grant for his research in Panama!
The field season has officially begun! Dr. Adams and Matt landed safely in Panama earlier this week, and Cody is soon to follow. They will spend the next month or so collecting and studying neotropical ant colonies in the rainforest.
Lab alumna Morgan Oberweiser accepted an internship with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Gamboa, Panama. She will be studying speciation and behavior of Heliconius butterflies in the research group of Dr. Richard Merrill.
The Adams Lab welcomed Science Olympiad students from schools in Solon and Chardon, Ohio. Mazie, Matt, Cody and Amy introduced high school students to our fungus-growing ants. Activities included an exercise in collecting behavioral data and observing leaf-cutter ants in action. Thanks to Solon and Chardon Science Olympiad for visiting!
Cody Cardenas will head to French Guiana in August to attend the Ant Course! Congratulations Cody!
Matt Boot received $4000 from the Office of International Affairs / Academic Enrichment Grant to work in Panama this summer (Title: A Geographic Basis for Coevolutionary Dynamics in the Mercenary-Ant Symbiosis).
Cody Cardenas received $4000 from the Office of International Affairs / Academic Enrichment Grant to work in Panama this summer (Title: Unearthing the Overlooked Fungus-growing Ant Parasitoid Relationship).
Amy Luo received first place for her poster at the OSU Denman Undergraduate Research Forum (Category: Environment and Conservation Monitoring)
Museum of Biological Diversity: We had our annual Open House event! We showed close to 4000 people how amazing fungus-growing ants are! This year the theme was Magnified so we also focused on the ant life cycle and Ohio Ants.
Best quote of the day:
I had no idea that ants were so cool!
Best quote Rachelle overheard from the Adams Lab Team:
It's like living in a gingerbread house where you can eat the walls but the walls are made of mushroom!
Rachelle was invited by the De Bekker Lab to give a talk at the University of Central Florida, Department of Biology - "Farmers, Bandits, and Samurai: Trials and Tribulations of the Ant World"
The Adams Lab was invited to discuss ant communication with the kids at the STEAM Factory's Saturday with a Scholar event. Also featured was speaker Angelika Nelson (Borror Lab)
Matt Boot is awarded the The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Libbie H. Hyman Memorial Scholarship ($1,840) for his field work in Panama! Congratulations!
Cody Cardenas is awarded the OSU Obey Scholarship ($2,000). He will spend this on his summer field work in Panama! Congratulations!
Adams Lab showed off our ants to about 45 Girl Scout Brownies at Bugs are for Girls! Best quote of the day:
I want to be a… what do you call it? Myrmecologist!
Rachelle was invited to give a talk at the University of Louisville Biology Department - "Chemical weaponry function: How social parasites dominate and protect their ant associates"
Rachelle is the keynote speaker at The University of Southern Mississippi, Department of Biological Sciences, Darwin Day celebration (Feb. 9, 2018) - "Farmers, Bandits, and Samurai: Trials and Tribulations of the Ant World" - Hattiesburg, MS