Entomology
Award Year
2015
University Award
Distinguished McKnight University Professors
Section A
, Location 14
Biological Control at a Crossroads in Agriculture and Conservation
In biological control, living organisms are introduced to control invasive species. This method has been used with great success, but also carries ecological risk. Professor Heimpel is making fundamental contributions in implementing this strategy to protect both soybeans in the U.S. and Darwin’s finches in the Galapagos Islands. He is also developing conceptual models that allow a balancing of benefits and risks in biological control to arrive at best overall solutions for managing invasive species.