Dr. Gendron Information

2001 Directory Faculty Information Page 2001
1976-2001 Index

Dr. Robert P. Gendron

Professor of Biology

Indiana Univ. of PA

Direct Link to Dr. Gendron's Home Page

Electronic Mail Address

RGendron@grove.iup.edu

Telephone

Office: (724) 357-2587
Biology Department Office: (724) 357-2352
FAX: (724) 357-5700

Semester Schedule

Office Hours

Teaching Schedule

IUP Campus Address

109 Weyandt Hall
Department of Biology
Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Indiana, Pennsylvania 15705

Professional Interests and Formal Education
[ Publications ]

Field: behavioral and evolutionary ecology: intraspecific competition, foraging behavior, predator-prey interactions.

I am studying an aphid, Hormaphis hamamelidis, that forms galls on the leaves of witch hazel plants. Each gall contains a female (the stem mother) and up to 50-70 of her offspring, all daughters. Galls are not distributed randomly, but instead tend to be clumped on certain leaves and trees. I am interested in the behavioral mechanisms that cause this clumping and how this affects the reproductive success of both the aphids and the plants. There are other aspects to this insect-plant interaction that are also quite interesting. For example, some of the aphids within a gall appear to act as "workers," leaving reproduction to their sisters. This phenomenon may shed some light on the evolution of social behavior in insects.

For many years I have also done research on foraging behavior. I have just completed a study of food storage behavior in small mammals. A colleague and I have developed a computer simulation model to help us understand how animals decide which food to eat right away and which ones to store in long term caches.

B.A. - 1972 University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware
M.A. - 1975 Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts
Ph.D. - 1982 Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
Postdoctorate: 1983 - 1986 Kansas State University,
Manhattan, Kansas

2001 Directory Faculty Information Page 2001 1976-2001 Index