2004-2005 Meetings

Minutes of the 1082nd Meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club

The 1082nd meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club was called to order by club president Corrie Saux Moreau at 7:30 pm on Tuesday, October 12th, 2004. Approximately 30 members and guests were in attendance.

The minutes of the 1081st meeting were read.

There was no old business or new business (David Small applied for membership?)

The October meeting, "Electronic Field Guides: Tools for Conservation" was a presentation by Dr. Robert Stevenson of the Umass biology department, and Fred SaintOurs, a Umass graduate who has been involved with the Electronic Field Guide project for several years.

The EFG is a web-accessible database of biological information intended for use by a variety of users, including researchers, educators, and students. It is designed to accommodate visual and written information. Among the goals for the EFG project are:

Fred SaintOurs showed images of aquatic insect larvae from Costa Rica and New England, and discussed habitat and photography of live and preserved specimens. He also discussed some sample pages from the Electronic Field Guide.

Other discussions: Adding other information to aid in ID's, such as observations about host plants and insects; getting reliable ID's; more discussion about dead vs. living specimens; contributions to the EFG by outside parties.

The meeting adjourned for refreshments about 9:00 pm.

Respectfully submitted,
Andrea Golden, CEC Secretary


Minutes of the 1083rd meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club

The 1083rd meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club was called to order by club president Corrie Saux Moreau at 7:30 pm on Tuesday, November 9th, 2004. Approximately 23 members and guests were in attendance.

The minutes of the 1082nd meeting were read. There were no corrections to the minutes.

Old business: New business: David Small applied for membership. Announcements: Anyone interested in aquatic insects contact S McCracken at [email address suppressed to prevent spam; try entclub at entclub.org]. Jonathan Rees is looking for contributions to the Cambridge Entomological Club website. He also demonstrated the new Psyche website. Several recent issues of Psyche are now available in pdf format with plans to expand the collection. Gary Alpert mentioned a new website based in Athens, Georgia. The url is www.discoverlife.org. The site is intended to aid people in identifying and learning about various groups of organisms, including insects.

The evening's speaker was Swee Peck Quek, a recent graduate from Prof. Naomi Pierce's laboratory. She is interested in the evolution of host-symbiont interactions and in the natural and anthropological histories of Southeast Asia. The title of her talk was Evolutionary Ecology of the Crematogaster-Macaranga-Coccid Symbiosis and an Ant's-Eye View to Southeast Asian Rain Forest History.

Abstract In the forests of Malaya, Sumatra and Borneo, 25 species of Macaranga trees are inhabited by mutualistic ants that occupy hollow stem domatia and defend their host plants against vines and herbivores. The ants harvest foodbodies secreted by the plants, and tend scale insects for honeydew within the hollow stems. Using phylogenetic tools, I investigate the evolution of host association among the Crematogaster (subgenus Decacrema) ant and coccid scale insect inhabitants of Macaranga trees, and infer time frames for their evolutionary diversifications. The Decacrema from Macaranga form a strongly monophyletic group comprising eleven well-defined clades showing a surprising degree of host specificity. A correlated succession of Macaranga stem texture traits is seen in the ant and plant phylogenies and indicates a history of codiversification between the mutualists. Based on a molecular clock analysis and on the age of rain forests in Southeast Asia, the ant plant mutualism is estimated to be 12-20 million years old. The association of the coccids with the ants and with the plants appears to be unspecific, in contrast to the specialized association between the ants and plants. However, the coccids and ants show similar levels of genetic divergence and parallel biogeographic scenarios, suggesting that most of their evolutionary histories have been contemporaneous. The Macaranga symbiotic system thus represents an ancient coevolved threesome dating to the mid-to-early Miocene. Using population genetic and phylogenetic analyses, I investigate the biogeographic and demographic history of the ants as a proxy to understanding rain forest history in Southeast Asia. The major diversification of Decacrema occurred in Borneo, with greatest endemism and taxonomic and genetic diversity in the northwest. Most migration events across the South China sea were inferred to have occurred during the Pliocene. In Malaya and Sumatra, taxonomic diversity, genetic diversity, and old, stable populations are associated with mountain ranges while the lowlands are occupied by younger populations that expanded in the Pleistocene. Thus northwest Borneo and Malayo-Sumatran mountain ranges may have harbored rain forest refugia during the more arid Pleistocene phases. The expansion dates suggest an earlier recovery of lowland rain forests in Borneo than in Malaya and Sumatra.

The meeting adjourned for refreshments and discussion at 8:40 pm.

Respectfully submitted,
Andrea Golden, CEC Secretary


Minutes of the 1084th meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club

The 1084th meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club was called to order by club president Corrie Saux Moreau at 7:30 pm on Tuesday, December 14th, 2004 MCZ 101, 26 Oxford Street at Harvard University. Approximately 16 members and guests were in attendance.

The minutes of the 1083rd meeting were read. There were no corrections to the minutes.

Old business: David Small was approved for membership.
New business: After January 3, the MCZ lot will no longer be available for parking. The Everett Garage is available for the January meeting. Subsequently, the new underground garage at 52 Oxford will probably be available. (to be confirmed)

Announcements: Corrie discussed finances of the club. The CEC is a non-profit and relies on tax-deductible dues and contributions for its support. Expenses include a substantial increase in parking fees. Regular membership dues will be $25/year, student dues $5/year.

The evening's speaker was James T. Costa, H. F. and Katherine P. Robinson Professor of Biology, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC and Jeanne Rosselet Fellow, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University (2004-5)

Dr. Costa's talk was entitled Phelypera distigma: Adventures studying sociality in the world's oddest weevil

Dr. Costa's specialty is Lepidoptera, but on a trip to Mexico he encountered some unknown gregarious larva that turned out to be the larvae of the weevil Phelypera distigma. The larvae of Phelypera distigma have parallels to social caterpillars, including sizeable larval colonies and the spinning of silk. Behaviors studied by Dr. Costa and his associates included rosette resting formations, head to tail processionary formations, and the production and nature of pheromones used by the larvae in marking trails.

The meeting adjourned for refreshments and discussion at 8:40 pm.

Respectfully submitted,
Andrea Golden, CEC Secretary


Minutes of the 1085th meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club

The 1085th meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club was called to order by club president Corrie Saux Moreau at 7:35 pm on Tuesday, January 11, 2005 MCZ 101, 26 Oxford Street at Harvard University. 14 members and 14 guests were in attendance.

The minutes of the 1084th meeting were read. There were no corrections to the minutes.

Old business: None
New business: The new Oxford Street parking garage is available to CEC members starting in February.

Announcements: Jonathan received a copy of Insights from Insects [manuscript] by Gilbert Waldbauer, for CEC members to review.

The evening's speaker was John Brownstein, Research Fellow, Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School Division of Emergency Medicine, Children's Hospital Boston. His talk was entitled "Landscape Ecology of Lyme Disease." Dr. Brownstein discussed his work in defining risk patterns for Lyme disease by characterizing localities using GIS and other tools. Factors examined included moisture, temperature, and seasonal patterns. Higher levels of "greenness" and "wetness" tended to indicate higher risk levels. Forested landscapes are most hospitable to the organisms involved in the transmission of Lyme disease, including I. scapularis, the deer tick, and the tick's hosts, deer and small mammals. Data from field work and other sources can be compiled to create risk maps covering multiple scales; a microhabitat, a regional area, or ultimately a risk map covering the continental US. Dr. Brownstein and his colleagues have identified suburbanization and reforestation of the NE region as factors that favor increased levels of Lyme disease.

There were numerous questions following Dr. Brownstein's talk from the larger than usual number of attendees. The talk was advertised in the January 11 Science and Health section of the Boston Globe.

The meeting adjourned for refreshments and discussion at 8:50 pm.

Respectfully submitted,
Andrea Golden, CEC Secretary


Minutes of the 1086th meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club

Minutes from the 1086th Meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club

The 1086th meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club was called to order by club president Corrie Saux Moreau at 7:35 pm on Tuesday, February 8, 2005 MCZ 101, 26 Oxford Street at Harvard University. Approximately 24 members and guests were in attendance.

The minutes of the 1085th meeting were read. There were no corrections to the minutes.

Old business: None
New business: Two people applied for membership, to be voted on at the next meeting

The evening's speaker was Adam Porter, Associate Professor at UMass Amherst.

His talk was entitled: Cognitive dissonance at the species boundary: A reductionist's view of hybridization and differentiation in butterflies

Dr. Porter is a population geneticist interested in how evolution works at the population, species and subspecies levels. (see website: http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~aporter/)

E. Mayr's definition of a species as an interbreeding population that does not exchange genes with other populations is not absolute. Dr. Porter's work on the species boundary is an attempt to characterize the exchange of genes across this boundary. He discussed two butterfly studies, one in N. Italy involving Pontia daplidice and Pontia edusa, and another in the U.S. involving Colias philodice (clouded sulphur) and Colias eurytheme (orange sulphur).

The meeting adjourned for refreshments and discussion at 8:50 pm

Respectfully submitted,
Andrea Golden, CEC Secretary


Minutes of the 1087th meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club

Minutes from the 1087th Meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club

The 1087th meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club was called to order by club president Corrie Saux Moreau at 7:30 pm on Tuesday, March 8, 2005 MCZ 101, 26 Oxford Street at Harvard University. Approximately 20 members and guests were in attendance in spite of a snowstorm.

The minutes of the 1086th meeting were read. There were no corrections to the minutes.

Old business: Two people were approved for membership, John Brownstein and John Gawoski.
New business: A reminder about dues. Annual dues is $25.00 or $5.00 for students.

The evening's speaker was Sebastián Vélez, Graduate Student, Dept of OEB, Harvard University. His talk was entitled: Why Are There So Many Insects in the Caribbean?

Abstract of Seminar Topic provided by Sebastián Vélez: Why are living things not distributed evenly among the planet? Why are there so many species in the tropics? Ecologists have been taking their shot at this question of `latitudinal gradients' for a century, and have pretty much beaten the horse to death with every possible ecological explanation (and speculation) imaginable. But there's an angle almost never touched: the role played by purely historical factors on the amount of intra-island input to diversity (i.e. in situ speciation), such as geological age, island size, surface area, patterns of submersion/emergence from the sea, evolutionary constraints impeding/fomenting migration or successful colonization. How do these factors brought about the sheer quantity of insects in the Caribbean is the topic of my thesis research, and this talk. I will also argue that the importance of understanding the role of these factors is not just in knowing how insect species came to be where they are, but in that make us understand how non-inevitable life is; how, if we were to rewind life's tape to 40 million years ago (the time of emergence of La Hispaniola), we would end up with a totally different biotic assembly every time.

I am broadly interested in two overlapping fields: speciation, i.e. how an evolutionary lineage splits into two; and island biogeography, i.e. causes of patterns of insular biota distribution.

The meeting adjourned for refreshments and discussion at 8:05 pm.

Respectfully submitted,
Andrea Golden, CEC Secretary


Minutes of the 1088th meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club

Minutes from the 1088th Meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club

The 1087th meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club was called to order by club president Corrie Saux Moreau at 7:30 pm on Tuesday, April 12, 2005 MCZ 101, 26 Oxford Street at Harvard University. Approximately ? members and guests were in attendance.

The minutes of the 1087th meeting were read. There were no corrections to the minutes.

Old business: None
New business: Officers for next year were nominated:

President - Sebastián Vélez
Vice Pres - Bill Stubblefield
Secretary - Andrea Golden
Treasurer - Jonathan Rees
Executive committeee (2) - Edward Plekavich and Gary Alpert

The evening's speaker was James Traniello, professor of Biology at Boston University

His talk was entitled: Infection Control in Group-living Animals: Insects as Model Systems in Socioecoimmunology

The meeting adjourned for refreshments and discussion at (?) pm

Respectfully submitted,
Andrea Golden, CEC Secretary


Minutes of the 1089th meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club

Minutes from the 1089th Meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club

The 1089th meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club was called to order by club president Corrie Saux Moreau at 7:35 pm on Tuesday, May 10, 2005 MCZ 101, 26 Oxford Street at Harvard University. 14 members and 6 guests were in attendance.

The minutes of the 1088th meeting were read. There were no corrections to the minutes.

Old business: Officers for 2005-2006 were approved by the membership:

President - Sebastián Vélez
Vice Pres - Bill Stubblefield
Secretary - Andrea Golden
Treasurer - Jonathan Rees
Executive committeee (2) - Edward Plekavich and Gary Alpert

New business: Year end reports:

  1. Report from the treasurer, Kathy Horton
  2. Report from Jonathan Rees on the Psyche [scanning] project
Rob Stevensen of UMass Boston discussed an extension of the Electronic Field guide project and invited CEC members to participate.

(See addendum following minutes for these items)

The evening's speaker was Douglass H. Morse, Professor of Biology, Brown University

Dr. Morse's talk was entitled "Scramble Competition and Sexual Selection." Dr. Morse described his work concerning sexual interactions in crab spiders. The spiders are sexually dimorphic, with the females being much larger than the males. The spiders are the same size when hatched, and remain similar until after the 5th instar. Females are more abundant than males, and the sex ratio becomes more skewed in favor of females over time. Aggression among male spiders is very high, unusual in scramble competition. Among other things, Dr. Morse looked at:

The meeting adjourned for refreshments and discussion at 9:05 pm

Respectfully submitted,
Andrea Golden, CEC Secretary

YEAR END REPORTS

1. TREASURER'S REPORT

[Members may contact current CEC officers for detail.]

2. PSYCHE

Jonathan Rees - update on Psyche

Jonathan has secured a $4000. open access publishing grant from Tom Knight of MIT to publish back issues of Psyche on the web. A pilot project with about 3% of the articles should be completed this month at Bay State Scanning. Jonathan has also arranged for digital archiving with Harvard Libraries' Dspace and indexing through Science Commons. He'll explore other indexing options later.

3. CEC AND EFG

Rob Stevensen of UMass Boston discussed an extension of the Electronic Field guide project and invited CEC members to participate:

The loss of biodiversity has led to an increased interest by taxonomists and others in sharing information. At the same time the development of the WWW has made finding and sharing information quicker and easier. There are many projects around the world attempting to raise people's awareness about biodiversity crisis by increasing access to biodiversity information.

The UMB Boston Electronic Field Guide Project (http://efg.cs.umb.edu/ ) has been working with local groups, including the Cambridge Entomological Club, to develop model projects that share biodiversity information and test biodiversity exchange standards. (The EFG project is working with others such as Taxonomic Database working Group and Global Biodiversity Information Facility to develop standards for descriptive data and images. A new focus for us is the use of species lists. Taxonomists, ecologists and field naturalists compile species lists for use in a variety of ways. For the EFG project lists are an important starting point because they are pivotal in deciding what is appropriate for a particular guide. Furthermore lists are the key to being able to compute local field guides.

Towards that goal we would like to initiate a discussion with members of the Cambridge Entomology Club about ways that software tools provided by the EFG project could support the development and management of lists by Entomology Club members and published on the Web. People interested in discussing this project further are invited to contact Rob Stevenson at robert.stevenson@umb.edu and Gary Alpert gary_alpert@harvard.edu . If a group of people are interested, we will hold a 3 to 4 hour workshop at which the computation, scientific and social issues issue will be discussed.




meetings   2003-04   2005-06

Jonathan A Rees

Last modified: Dec 2 2004