I am broadly interested in arthropod adaptation in response to human footprints in an ecosystem.  I combine laboratory experiments, field collecting/sampling, and cutting-edge molecular and computational approaches in an integrative way to quantify the impacts of human activities on genomic variation in arthropod species.  While my focal organisms are from disparate taxonomic groups, they serve as models to address a broad evolutionary question: how do human-mediated changes in the landscape sculpt arthropod genomes and produce adaptive phenotypic change?  My research also considers the downstream consequences of rapid adaptive changes for both agricultural productivity and vector-borne disease transmission. 

Thea graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in Ecology and Evolution and minor in Sustainability in 2021. She joined the Fritz lab as the manager and maintains the mosquito cultures currently being used for research. Her research projects involve blood meal analysis to quantify vertebrate blood host use in wild Culex, and pathogen detection in tick vectors of Lyme disease. 

Cara is a laboratory technician responsible for lab maintenance and assists with lab projects, as needed. Her own research examines the genetics of Helicoverpa zea resistance to Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) Cry toxins.

Theresa is a Ph.D. student in the CBBG program (Department of Biology). She uses genomic and transcriptomic data to connect patterns of chemosensory gene expression and polymorphism to host preference in mosquito vectors of disease. 

Ben is interested in how the built environment shapes animal evolution, and how urban infrastructure can be designed to facilitate more mutualistic interactions between people and wildlife. Ben's Ph.D. research aims to uncover patterns of adaptive genomic divergence and gene flow among Culex pipiens assemblage members along an urban-rural gradient in greater Washington, D.C.  

Ben Burgunder graduated from Cornell in 2022 with a degree in entomology and a minor in infectious disease biology. He is interested in West Nile virus transmission and vector ecology. His research in the Fritz lab focuses on the spatial ecology of Culex mosquitoes. Outside of the lab, Ben is passionate about insect photography and hiking. 

In his research, Abu Bhatty explores the utility of genomic monitoring to detect emerging pesticide resistance in agricultural pests.  Through whole genome simulations in SLiM, I aim to understand how evolutionary, population demographic, and environmental factors impact the proliferation of resistance mechanisms. I hope to improve resistance management strategies by offering insights into both the strengths and limitations of genomic monitoring under diverse conditions.