News

October 25, 2017: Ries Lab hosts ButterflyNet Meeting

The Ries Lab is part of a multi-institution collaborative project (ButterflyNet) to aggregate data on phylogeny, distribution and traits. The most recent "all-hands" meeting was here at Georgetown (Oct 5-9) and we had 20 attendees!

Tags: butterflynet

September 18, 2017: Ries Lab hosts Phenology meeting

Our recently funded NSF grant on phenological mismatch kicked off this past weekend with all the project partners come together for a great 3-day meeting at Georgetown. In addition to some serious organizational activity, we took a stroll around...

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August 31, 2017: Ries Lab Recruiting

We are looking for two independent and detail-oriented undergraduate research assitants to start as soon as possible in the fall 2017 semester. Research assistants will be paid $12.50/hour and will work on both experimental ecology of...

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June 26, 2017: Where does one find Baltimore Checkerspots? Cape Cod, of course!

Members of the Ries Lab are in Massachusetts to refresh our stock of Baltimore Checkerspots. This species, once common in the region, is now so rare in Maryland that it is considered imperiled statewide. One of the reasons these butterflies are...

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June 19, 2017: National Pollinator Week

June 19-25, 2017 has been designated National Pollinator Week by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of the Interior. Read more about this here: http://pollinator.org/...

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Tags: pollinator

June 05, 2017: Lab receives two new NSF grants!

The Ries Lab was just informed that two NSF proposals were recommended for funding. HOORAY!

The first is a $1.6m collaborative grant (330K to Georgetown) focused on climatic drivers of phenological (seasonal timing) changes at multiple...

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April 27, 2017: Baltimore Checkerspots: The Next Generation

Courtship and mating behaviors had been observed over the last week and today, despite the cooler indoor environment and limited sunlight, the first batches of eggs have been laid. The eggs were deposited on the underside of the leaves of...

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April 07, 2017: Our Baltimore Checkerspots are pupating

This is our first Baltimore Checkerspot pupa of the season. It completed larval development so fast because it's been kept at rather high temperatures (32°C).


March 24, 2017: Prof. Ries seminar at American University

Prof. Ries will give a talk on March 29th on butterfly responses to climate change as part of American University's Humanities series on energy. For more information, see here:...

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Tags: seminar

March 23, 2017: Our Baltimore Checkerspots are waking up from diapause

Our first generation of Baltimore Checkerspot caterpillars are resuming activities. They overwintered as 4th instar larvae and are getting ready to complete development this spring.