My conservation oriented research includes a mixture of descriptive and experimental research in two ecosystems in the southeastern United States, longleaf pine savannas and mixed mesophytic hardwood forests. Both are disturbed, fragmented, and threatened in Louisiana. Through joint collaborations with the Louisiana State Arthropod Museum (LSAM), my students and I have catalogued selected moths, ants, and bees in these two habitats. Using experimental approaches, we have tested effects of management practices such as fire frequency and fire season on insect species diversity and composition. We have also addressed the effects of an exotic insect, the red imported fire ant, on species diversity of other ants and beetles.
I am focusing a significant amount of effort on teaching environmentally focused courses to undergraduates and occasionally graduates. I am currently involved in teaching Conservation Biology, Science and Society, How do we know? Making sense of and acting in today's world, Science Communication, and Sustaining Louisiana's coast.
For more details of my research and teaching programs please go to: http://www.entomology.lsu.edu/faculty/prowell/index.htm
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