My students and I work in three general areas bridging evolution and ecology: 1) structure and dynamics of arthropod populations, 2) integration of communities, especially those under anthropogenic influence and 3) the nature and evolution of arthropod species and their life-histories. Issues in these foci are richly interconnected and I believe that a synthetic approach is central for full understanding of biological issues and for rational management of sustainable ecosystems. Thus, the research program in my lab couples broad scientific objectives with the promise of shorter term applications in management and conservation of forests and wetlands. Work generally proceeds from a strong natural history base to develop experimental approaches to questions that apply to particular taxa. Generalization follows after common threads are discovered and confirmed experimentally. The attached publication list provides the flavour of recent work in the laboratory. Further information is available upon request; please be specific about interests. Students are encouraged to fit their own specific research interests into the broad framework of the overall lab program. I take development of a research proposal as an important and essential aspect of graduate applications. All students interested in working in my lab should make contact early enough to allow time for such interactions to develop. Work with forestry connections is done in close collaboration with scientists at the Northern Forestry Centre in Edmonton (see information under Adjunct Professors D. W. Langor and W. J. A. Volney). Significant collaborations are also presently underway with N. Møller Andersen (Copenhagen, Denmark), T. Harada (Kochi, Japan), W. J. Mattson (East Lansing, USA), Jari Niemelä & K. Vepsalainen (Helsinki, Finland), F. A. H. Sperling (Berkeley, USA), and M. Zimmermann (Bern, Switzerland).