Ben Anderson

Ben was the UF CALS commencement speaker for his graduating class in spring of 2010. He is now pursuing a M.S. in Public Health at UF. Ben completed two undergraduate semesters in the lab examining the use of social cues by cactus bugs. This work has now been submitted for publication.

C. Will Maxwell

Will spent nearly two years in the Miller Lab as an undergraduate researcher. Through the University Scholar's program, he pursued field work on cactus bug perceptual range at the Ordway-Swisher Biological Station. He presented a poster of this work at the UF Undergraduate Research Symposium and his work has been published in the Journal of Undergraduate Research.

Elisa Martinez

Elisa completed over two years in the Miller Lab as an undergraduate researcher. The bulk of her research focused on a heritability experiment for cactus bug morphology and reproductive behaviors. She has reared, watched, dissected, and photographed hundreds of cactus bugs.

Melaina McDow

Melaina conducted a research internship in the Miller Lab in summer 2010. She received her B.S. in Biology from UF in 2009. She worked as part of our integrated team on genotype x environment interactions in cactus bugs.

Fae Nageon de Lestang

Fae was the first student to join the lab and completed a year and a half of undergraduate research. She was a University Scholar and has published and presented her work nationally. See "Publications" link for more details.

Rebekah Zaiser

Bekah completed three semesters in the Miller Lab as an undergraduate researcher. She received the HHMI Science for Life award and completed an independent project on mating behavior in cactus bugs. She presented a poster on this work in January 2010.

Grant McDonald

Grant spent part of 2010 as an international visiting scholar in the Miller lab. During this time he worked intensely with us on a genotype-by-environment project in cactus bugs. He is now pursuing a Ph.D. at Oxford University.

Duncan Procter

Duncan spent part of 2010 as an international visiting scholar in the Miller lab. During this time he conducted research for his MSc degree in Evolutionary and Behavioural Ecology at the University of Exeter in the UK. His thesis investigated the importance of social context for success in male-male competitions.

Hannah McKenrick

Hannah graduated in 2011 with a B.S. in Entomology and has begun her Ph.D. at the University of Kentucky. Hannah worked as an undergraduate researcher and technician in the lab. She was a key player in keeping our genotype x environment research project running smoothly.

Holley Short

Holley completed over two semesters in the lab before receiving her B.S. in wildlife ecology. She worked primarily on our big genotype x environment experiment. She is now off to conduct exciting field work as a research technician.

Marina Vaerst

Marina finished her undergraduate degree as a double-major in animal sciences and food science and human nutrition. She begins veterinary school this fall at Cornell. Marina's lab work focused on the effects of cactus bug nutrition on offspring development and performance.

Linhchi Nguyen

Chi completed two years in the lab as an undergraduate researcher. She initially worked on a team project on the use of social information in cactus bugs. She completed her senior thesis work on the chemical ecology of cactus bugs. She has now graduated with a B.S. in chemistry and begun work as a research technician at UF.

Aitor Alvarez-Fernandez

Aitor joined the lab for several months in 2011 as an international visiting scholar. During this time he conducted research for his MSc degree in Evolutionary and Behavioural Ecology at the University of Exeter in the UK. His thesis investigated phenotypic correlations between male-male competitive success, male attractiveness, and male rearing environment.

Iain Gordon

Iain jumped into our busy lab life for several months in 2011 as an international visiting scholar. He investigated the heritability of male size and weaponry as part of his MSc degree in Evolutionary and Behavioural Ecology at the University of Exeter in the UK.

Katherine Short

Katherine also came over from the University of Exeter in the UK as an international visiting scholar. Her MSc thesis work investigated chemical ecology and context-dependent attraction in the leaf-footed cactus bug, Narnia femorata.

Stephanie Gillespie

Stephanie Gillespie spent a total of three years in the Miller Lab, two of which were during her undergraduate years. During her time in the lab she completed several projects, including one she presented at the 2010 Evolution International Conference. Stephanie and Allison were crucial players in the success of the NSF-funded experiment investigating the genetic and environmental contributions to performance. Stephanie began a Ph.D. at Mount Sinai College of Medicine in the fall of 2011.

Allison Bechard

Allison came down to the University of Florida from Canada in 2009 to be the lead technician on an NSF-funded project investigating the genetic and environmental contributions to performance. She managed to rear, organize, and measure thousands of cactus bugs! Allison had previously completed her M.Sc. in Animal Behavior & Welfare at the University of Guelph. She is now off to a Ph.D. at the University of Florida in Neurobiology.

Luke Hein

Luke was a technician in the lab in 2011. He was tremendous help with our quantitative genetics study, putting in endless hours breeding insects and keeping them organized. He was also the lab videographer, completing two videos for the lab during his time with us.