News

May 15, 2025: ChatGPT creates new biography for Leslie!

Based on this prompt: "Please write a biography of Leslie Ries, professor at Georgetown University, but make it sound like she is really interesting and fun and is kind of kooky and crazy"

Dr. Leslie Ries: Butterfly Wrangler, Data...

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May 14, 2025: First checkerspot of the season

Say hello to Anngely's first adult checkerspot of her first big field and lab season. Congrats Anngely (and all the helpers) for this big milestone!


May 14, 2025: Vaughn wins prestiguous Glassman Award!!!

Dr. Shirey is the joint recipient, with Dr. David Saxon, of the 2025 Harold N. Glassman Distinguished Dissertation Award in the Sciences. YOU ROCK VAUGHN!!


April 07, 2025: Ries lab stands up for science!

Elise, Leslie and Anngely all made it to the Stand up for Science rally on the mall on March 7th!


March 06, 2025: Groundbreaking study

PUBLISHED: STATE OF USA BUTTERFLIES
Today, Science published major results of our work with the USGS Powell Center “Status of Butterflies in the United States” working group, which found dramatic declines in many...

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January 24, 2025: Insect Decline RCN

This week, lab members are participating in the Status of Insects RCN annual virtual meeting, hearing from researchers around the world. Grace is presenting a poster on local adaptation across...

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November 22, 2024: First in-person winter workshop for the adaptopod collaborative

Our collaborative group focused on how insects adapt to climate change had our first winter workshop in person (instead of zoom) in Phoenix as part of the 2024 Entomological Society meeting. Our group discussed our research project to date and...

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October 01, 2024: Leslie participates in panel on pesticides and pollinators at NY Climate Week

Leslie traveled to NY Climate Week to participate in this panel on pesticides and pollinators (our...

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July 11, 2024: Our first Baltimore Checkerspot caterpillar of the season hatches!

This little guy hatched from an egg clutch found by Anngely in a MD site and these hatchlings will help us determine how well they can survive on invasive English plantain. In this part of their range - moms do not lay on plantain (but they do in...

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June 20, 2024: New collaborative article shows the dangers of neonicotinoids

After many years of work, a collaborative article between Leslie and scientists from Michigan State University and Iowa State shows the negative impacts of insecticides in general and neonicotinoids in particular. The study was...

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