Katrina will be adding her expertise in molecular systematics and population genetics for a PhD dissertation on the Phylinae tribe Leucophoropterini. Not only will she be adding molecular data to her own investigations, but will also be obtaining gene sequences for current and future Miridae investigations in other groups.

Katrina got her Bachelors degree in Biology at The College of William and Mary. While there, she volunteered and later worked during her summers at the Smithsonian Institution of Natural History for Tom Henry. During this time period she developed a love for Miridae systematics and the biodiversity of the group. She later obtained her Masters degree at Texas A&M University doing a project on the molecular systematics and population biology of the scolytid beetle Conophthorus, where she gained valuable experience in species-level phylogenies and current molecular protocols. She hopes to add her expertise in molecular techniques and phylogenetics to the PBI project by adding more sources of data to the ongoing taxonomic investigations of the Phylini and Orthotylini. As of November 2007, Katrina successfully completed her written and oral examinations and is now ready to pursue her dissertation research fulltime.

I look forward to working for the PBI project because I finally get to work on the group of insects that I have been interested in for so long, as well as to add more data to the already very extensive and thorough accomplishments that this project has accumulated thus far. In doing so, I feel not only will current entomologists benefit from a better understanding of the biodiversity of these groups, but also provide basic knowledge of for future scientists and investigations to build upon.