Current Lab Members
Raul F. Medina
Professor
PhD: Entomology, University of Maryland (2005)
MS: Entomology, University of Maryland (1999)
BS: Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina (1995)
rfmedina@tamu.edu
Phone: (979) 845-8304
My research focuses on population genetics and evolutionary ecology. In my laboratory we are assessing how common host-associated differentiation (HAD) is in nature as well as exploring the factors that may explain its existence. Host-associated differentiation is the formation of host-associated lineages. These host-associated lineages can occur in herbivorous insects associated with different host-plant species as well as in parasitoids associated with different host-plant complexes. HAD has been postulated as a process explaining insect staggering biodiversity thus, increasing our knowledge on HAD will improve our understanding of insect biodiversity. We are also interested in knowing how microevolutionary forces impact pest control practices in agro-ecosystems. Understanding how ecological interactions (e.g. plant-insect, predator-prey, parasitoid-host interactions) affect the genetic population structure (i.e., the genetic differentiation of populations) of insect pests and their predators and parasitoids will improve the way we control pest species in agro-ecosystems. At the moment my laboratory is studying how host-plant association, pheromone production, mating behavior and geographic factors may all influence the way in which insect populations are structured. My lab is also exploring how the number of hosts used by parasitoid species mediates their population genetic structure patterns.
Caden Pollock
PhD Student
I am Caden Pollock. My research focuses on the corn leafhopper (Dalbulus maidis). I am currently assessing the genetic structure of the populations present in the US from 2024–2025, and their potential to overwinter in the US. I am also doing work in the efficacy of applied insecticides and management strategies of this pest. I am interested in applying this knowledge in the future to current pest control practices.
Kenna Stone
PhD Student
Kenna Stone graduated with a BS in entomology from the University of Florida in May 2025 and is in her first year of her PhD in the Texas A&M Department of Entomology. She is co-advised by Dr. Raul Medina and Dr. Julio Bernal. Thus far in her career, she has already held many research and teaching positions. She began as a student intern at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, researching vector mapping of Moroccan ticks. From there, she moved on to an undergraduate research position at the University of Florida in Lisa Taylor’s Arthropod Behavior, Ecology, and Evolution lab, researching chemical aposematism. She now works as a graduate teaching assistant, teaching introductory entomology to undergraduate students, and as a graduate research assistant in the lab of Dr. Julio Bernal, researching the impact of microbial heterosis on pest resistance. She has also participated extensively in outreach as the founder of an entomology course for ages 8-12, as an officer in her local undergraduate entomology club, and through consistent volunteer work. In her free time, Kenna enjoys being active, reading, and throwing pottery.
Kate Humlicek
PhD Student
Kate Humlicek graduated from Texas A&M University in 2024 with a BS in Biomedical Sciences and a Certificate in Public Health Entomology. During her undergraduate studies, Kate developed a passion for understanding arthropod vectors and their impacts on human and animal health. Further elucidating factors which influence pathogen transmission in arthropod disease systems will be the focus of her research. Outside of the lab, Kate enjoys riding horses, traveling, and enjoying a good book.
Lily Margeson
PhD Student
Hi! I’m Lily Margeson. I graduated with my BS in Environmental and Natural Resources from Clemson University in 2023. There, I fell in love with insect–microbe interactions and community ecology as a member of the Bewick Lab, studying how metapopulation dynamics and feeding behaviors affect the microbiota. At Texas A&M, I study how the honeydew microbiota impacts the invasion ecology of the sorghum aphid, Melanaphis sorghi, with respect to predators (e.g. Coccinellids) and mutualists (tawny crazy ant, Nylanderia fulva) as means of deepening my passion for microbiota-mediated multitrophic interactions. When I’m not at work, I’m usually knitting, watching TV, and/or hanging out with my cat.