Gerhard J. Gries

We study mechanisms of insect/spider/animal communication and resource-foraging. We elucidate semiochemical, sonic, visual, infrared and bacterial communication signals and foraging cues, and investigate how these signals or cues may have evolved in response to community composition, scarceness of resources, and physical parameters of the habitat. We also develop acquired knowledge for sophisticated control of pest insects or animals.

Most of our current study objects (brown rats, black rats, house mice, black widow spiders, blow flies, house flies, bed bugs, ants, cockroaches, yellowjackets, cabbage butterflies) have major economic or ecological implications. We work on them under the premise that their biology and communication ecology is as intriguing as that of any other insect.