Kenneth Geisert

Bio

I am an aspiring Coleopterist focused on revising the taxonomy and phylogeny of Cerambycidae. As an undergraduate, I focused on the invasive Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis; Coleoptera: Buprestidae) extensively. I surveyed EAB density in Connecticut utilizing Cerceris fumipennis at the Connecticut Agricultural Experimentation Station and then worked at the USDA Beneficial Insect Introduction Research Unit (BIIRU) in Delaware. At BIIRU, I focused on biocontrol efforts and rearing EAB and its main parasitoids: Spathius galinae, S. agrili, Oobius agrili, O. primorskyensis, and Tetrastichus planipennisi. I then worked in the University of Delaware’s Insect Research Collection where I curated, photographed, and databased Cerambycidae. I also actively identify and curate Cerambycidae on iNaturalist, primarily in the Nearctic realm, with an affinity towards the subfamily Lamiinae.