Short Bio:
I am a previous graduate student and lab manager. My research interests include chemical ecology, plant-insect interactions, and pest behavior.
My graduate work focused on the semiochemicals associated with the black turpentine beetle, Dendroctonus terebrans. Experiments involved multiple rounds of trapping using both pheromones and tree host volatiles in order to test the attractiveness of different lure arrangements. I also organized a research experiment to resolve the taxonomic status of the widespread ambrosia beetle species, Xyleborus ferrugineus, using molecular and morphometric techniques.
Prior to joining UF, I was a member of basic and applied arthropod research labs at the University of Vermont where I received my B.S. Here I divided my time among several projects, including the systematics and biogeography of orb-weaver spiders, as well as the management of gall midge pests via volatile chemicals. In other positions, I’ve helped develop integrated pest management strategies for the National Park Service and assisted Hawaiian coffee growers in surveying populations of the coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei.
Education and Experience:
2020-2022: Graduate Research Assistant / UF Forest Entomology Lab
2020-2020: IPM Specialist, The Great Basin Institute / National Park Service
2017-2019: Agnarsson Lab, Insect Agroecology and Evolution Lab, University of Vermont
2016-2017: Insect Surveyor, University of Hawaii / Hawaii Department of Agriculture
2014-2014: Research Intern, Vermont EPSCoR
2012-2016: B.S. in Biology, University of Vermont
LeMay, G. A., O’Loughlin, T., Wakarchuk, D., & Hulcr, J. (2022). Field Response of Black Turpentine Beetle to Pine Resin Oxidation and Pheromone Displacement. Journal of Chemical Ecology, 1, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1007/S10886-022-01361-7
Johnson, A., LeMay, G. A., & Hulcr, J. (2022). Identification of Coffee Berry Borer from Similar Bark Beetles in Southeast Asia and Oceania. EDIS, 2022(1), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.32473/edis-fr447-2022
LeMay, G. A., Kawabata, A. M., & Curtiss, R. (2022). Statewide Survey of Insects Found on Coffee in Hawaii. Proceedings of the Hawaiian Entomological Society, 54, 41–52. http://hdl.handle.net/10125/81749
LeMay, G. A., & Agnarsson, I. (2020). New species of smiley-faced spider Spintharus (Araneae, Theridiidae) from Brazil, and comments on unobserved diversity in South America. ZooKeys, 915, 17.
