Current members

I am a naturalist, zoologist and behavioural ecologist in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. I focus my research on terrestrial invertebrates and I am continually astounded by the diversity in their morphology and behaviour. In New Zealand, we are fortunate to have some of the most remarkable arthropods in our backyards and the Holwell lab has explored much of this beautiful country, along with Australia and South-East Asia searching for exciting research topics. Currently, we have a major focus on understanding the evolution of diverse and exaggerated weaponry in harvestmen, spiders and weta along with exploring the evolution of genitalia and the dynamics of scramble competition in arthropods. Another focus is camouflage, investigating the extraordinary adaptations insects and spiders have for concealing themselves from predators and prey. We also enjoy a longstanding collaboration with Plant & Food Research NZ where a number of our shared postgraduate students are based working on insect biological control agents.

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Neil Birrell

PhD candidate – Email

I am currently working towards a PhD in the Holwell lab. We are looking at various aspects of Hermetia illucens, which is also known as the black soldier fly. I am slightly ecclectic in my interests, which include invertebrates, biotechnology, geography, aquaculture, commercialisation of science and entomophagy. I am currently pursuing a venture which would use insects to convert organic waste into a sustainable source of insect protein and lipids for use as an agricultural feedstock.

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Morgane Merien

PhD Candidate – Website | Email| Twitter

My PhD research pretty much boils down to one big question: “Why and how such arrays of colour?” The appearance of an animal plays an important part in its reproduction and survival. Camouflage has a long and illustrious history within scientific academia and many examples of cryptically coloured organisms have been used as models to test several evolutionary theories. Phasmids display some of the most obvious types of camouflage and are widely known for these adaptations (the name kinda gives it away, right?). Furthermore, many camouflaged organisms display colour polymorphism between individuals in a population, and at different life stages. Camouflage and colour polymorphism has been observed in many species of New Zealand phasmids. However, very little research has been conducted on them. I’m aiming to look at how and why this variation in colour is produced, and how this influences their camouflage, and hence their interaction with the environment (or vice-versa), and ultimately their survival.

 

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Inoka Suwandharathne

PhD Candidate – Email

My research focuses on biological control of pests. There is a growing concern on how climatic change will affect biological pest control in the future. I intend to assess the efficacy and likelihood of changes in classical biological control system under future climate change scenarios with special reference to the high/extreme temperatures and unexpected heat waves that are predicted to occur more frequently in the future.  For this study, I will use the invasive pest, Tomato potato psyllid, Bactericera cockerelli and its introduced parasitoids Tamarixia triozae as a model biocontrol system in New Zealand. I expect to determine the temperature dependence of development traits and the rate of parasitism of T. triozae under elevated temperatures and simulated heatwaves. Evaluation of behavioural changes of parasitoids in response to higher temperature is also part of this study. Finally, a climatic model will determine the potential geographic distribution for T. triozae. This PhD project is supervised by Associate Professor Greg Holwell at the University of Auckland and co-supervised by Dr Gonzalo Avila at the Plant & Food Research, New Zealand.

I completed my BSc in Agriculture (2004) from the University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka and MPhil in Entomology (2014) from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. I am a research scientist in the Coconut Research Institute of Sri Lanka and have worked on integrated pest management, biological control, insect ecology, plant-insect interactions, and insect pheromones. Disseminating knowledge and helping stakeholders to manage insect pests using eco-friendly methods are the most enjoyable part of my job. I would love to continue my research on climate-smart pest management with given emphasis to eco-friendly strategies in future.