Career Summary
Senior Lecturer in Entomology, School of Agricultural Science, University of Tasmania. 2003-present
Lecturer in Entomology, School of Agricultural Science, University of Tasmania/Project Leader, Entomology (Tasmania), Resource Protection Program, CRC for Sustainable Production Forestry. 1998-2002
ARC Research Fellow, Department of Zoology, University of Western Australia, Western Australia. 1992-1997
Fulbright Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Entomology, University of California, Riverside, USA. 1990-1991
PhD in Entomology, The University of Adelaide. Thesis title: "Behaviour and ecology of the primary parasitoids Cotesia urabae and Dolichogenidea eucalypti (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) and their host Uraba lugens (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)." 1985-1989
Research Assistant (Sydney University), Army Malaria Research Unit, Ingleburn, NSW. 1983-1984.
Research Interests
My main interests centre on insect behaviour from its evolution to its application in pest management. My evolutionary research focuses on developmental and reproductive strategies in relation to fitness, whereas my pest management research focuses on reducing insecticide usage by enhancing the efficacy of other control methods, especially biological control and the use of pheromones and kairomones.
Particular areas of research include:
1) The behaviour and chemical ecology of host/mate location/choice and oviposition in insects
2) Behavioural interactions between insect natural enemies (especially parasitoids) and their hosts
3) The reproductive, foraging and feeding ecology of insects
Eucalypt feeding insects are a core area of the entomology group’s research. They offer the opportunity of not only applied research but, unlike pests of most agricultural crops, both pests and natural enemies have evolved in that ecosystem, thereby allowing testing of fundamental evolutionary questions side by side with applied questions. We are currently researching the behaviour and chemical ecology of eucalypt feeding leaf beetles, autumn gum moth and scarab beetles. Other collaborative areas include weed biocontrol, pollinators in vegetable seed crops and insect vectors of plant diseases.
Our research group has close interactions with both plant geneticists and organic chemists. The university has access to excellent chemistry facilities through the Organic Mass Spectrometry facilities in the Central Science Laboratory (CSL of the University of Tasmania). Dr. Noel Davies of the CSL is a specialist in the application of gas and liquid chromatography in conjunction with mass spectrometry to organic chemical analyses and structural elucidation of novel compounds of plant or insect origin. Significant research tools include video event recording equipment, a GC-EAG, a wind-tunnel, olfactometers for behavioural assays and access to an excellent base of pedigreed genetic material of Eucalyptus, particularly for the major temperate plantation species Eucalyptus globulus and E. nitens.
Research Areas:- Research at the School of Agricultural Science
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Teaching
I teach units in entomology and crop health management.
UnitsSelected Publications:- Kemp, DJ, Alcock, J, Allen, GR, 2006, 'Sequential size assessment and multicomponent decision rules mediate aerial wasp contests', Animal Behaviour, 71, pgs. 279-287
- Davies, JT, Ireson, J, Allen, GR, 2005, 'The impact of gorse thrips, ryegrass competition, and simulated grazing on gorse seedling performance in a controlled environment', Biological Control, 32, pgs. 280-286
- Rapley, LP, Allen, GR, Potts, BM, 2004, 'Genetic variation of Eucalyptus globulus in relation to autumn gum moth Mnesampela privata (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) oviposition preference', Forest Ecology and Management, 194, pgs. 169-175
- Rapley, LP, Allen, GR, Potts, BM, 2004, 'Susceptibility of Eucalyptus globulus to Mnesampela privata defoliation in relation to a specific foliar wax compound', Chemoecology, 14, pgs. 157-163
- Allen, GR, Kamien, K, Berry, O, Byrne, P & Hunt, J , 1999, 'Larviposition, host cues and planidial behavior in the sound locating fly Homotrixa alleni (Diptera: Tachinidae)', Journal of Insect Behaviour, 12, pgs. 67-79
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