Melissa Cook (MSc Student)
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Contact Info
Email: macook@sfu.ca
Phone: +1.778.782.4512
Fax: +1.778.782.3496
Location: B 7250
Current Research
I am currently enrolled in the Master of Science program at SFU where I am co-supervised by Dr. Roitberg (SFU EBERG) and Dr. Sheila Fitzpatrick (Pacific Agri-Food Research Center, Agassiz). Previously, I completed my BSc Co-operative Education degree in Ecology and Evolution focusing on entomology and botany. I also completed an additional major in Archaeology at SFU focusing on archaeobotany, human osteology and ecological archaeology.
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My research focuses on host associated differentiation and speciation of cranberry tipworm, Dasineura oxycoccana (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae), on highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) and cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon). In British Columbia, D. oxycoccana, was initially found on highbush blueberry and has recently become a pest of cranberry. Dasineura oxycoccana has the potential to speciate on these two closely related crops which will have important pest management implications.
In particular, I have focused on temporal separation and geneflow of tipworm populations found on several varieties of blueberry and cranberry by examining pest and plant phenology. Most recently, I conducted mating and oviposition experiments between tipworm populations found on blueberry and cranberry to examine mating behavior and hybrid performance.
Curriculum Vitae
Available as PDF here.
Publications
- Cook, M. A., Ozeroff, S. N., Fitzpatrick, S. M. and Roitberg, B. D. (2011). Host-associated differentiation in reproductive behaviour of cecidomyiid midges on cranberry and blueberry. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata 141: 8–14. [ DOI: 10.1111/j.1570-7458.2011.01166.x ]
- Wijenberg, R., Takacs, S., Cook, M. and Gries, G. (2008) Foraging female German cockroaches join conspecific groups based on the incidence of auditory cues. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata 129: 124-131