LaPolla, John S.

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Assistant Professor Department of Biological Sciences Towson University Towson, MD 21252 USA

Office: Smith 351 Phone: 410-704-3121 Fax:     410-704-2405

email: jlapolla@towson.edu

Education:

Postdoctoral research Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History Ph.D. Rutgers University B.S.   Stockton College Research Interests: 1) Coevolution of Acropyga ants and mealybugs Acropyga ants display a fascinating behavior I have termed trophophoresy. Trophophoresy is the behavior of a queen ant taking with her on her mating flight a mealybug from her birth nest (LaPolla, 2002).  This mealybug serves as a "seed" individual through which a new colony of mealybugs will be created.  The ants feed on the sugary substances produced by the mealybugs.  It is believed the ants and mealybugs are mutually dependent on one another for survival.  Acropyga ants are, in a sense, the dairy farmers of the ant world.  We know virtually nothing about the symbiosis between Acropyga ants and their mealybug “cattle.”  Investigating the biological aspects of this complex symbiosis has become a major component of my research program.  In collaboration with Drs. Ted Schultz & Sean Brady (National Museum of Natural History) and Dr. Joseph Bischoff (National Institutes of Health-GenBank), several important studies are planned over the next several years.

2) Biodiversity Studies I have employed the replicable "ALL" (Ants of the Leaf Litter) protocol to examine patterns of ant diversity across South America. In collaboration with Dr. Ted Schultz (NMNH) and doctoral student Jeffery Sosa-Calvo (U Maryland-College Park), my research project will continue gathering and examining leaf litter ant data from Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Brazil and Peru.  Over the next three years, we will complete on-going studies comparing the Guiana Shield fauna to the rest of South America to extrapolate patterns of endemism and identify areas of conservation concern.

3) Revisionary Systematics I am in the process of completing a world revision of the ant genus Paratrechina, a large genus of over 140 species, and a group that contains many invasive species of agricultural and economic importance. With no taxonomic monograph available, most Paratrechina species are currently impossible to identify.  Defining the species will help efforts at using biological control methods to control invasive species.  The genus has never been revised and there are undoubtedly many new species awaiting discovery. I am also currently beginning a world revision of the genus Discothyrea with doctoral student Jeffery Sosa-Calvo (U Maryland-College Park).  These enigmatic ants are found worldwide in subtropical and tropical localities.  They are thought to be specialist predators on arthropod eggs. Funding in support of this research is provided by a grant from the National Science Foundation (DEB #0743542) to JSL.

TAXONOMIC PUBLICATIONS

 * LaPolla, J.S. 2002. On the generic placement of Pseudolasius dodo, with taxonomic notes on the genus. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 128: 377-383.


 * LaPolla, J.S. 2004a. Acropyga of the world. Contributions of the American Entomological Institute 33 (3): 1-130.


 * LaPolla, J.S. 2004b. Taxonomic review of the ant genus Pseudolasius in the Afrotropical region. Journal of the New York Entomological Society 112: 97-105.


 * LaPolla, J.S. 2005. Ancient trophophoresy: a fossil Acropyga from Dominican amber. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 131: 21-28.


 * LaPolla, J.S. 2006a. Description of the male of Acropyga paleartica Menozzi, 1936. Myrmecologische Nachrichten 8: 171-173.


 * LaPolla, J.S. 2006b. Pheidole neoschultzi: replacement name for Pheidole schultzi LaPolla, 2005, a junior homonym of Pheidole schultzei Forel, 1910. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 132: 427.


 * LaPolla, J.S. 2009. Taxonomic revision of the Southeast Asian ant genus Euprenolepis. Zootaxa 2046: 1-25.


 * LaPolla, J.S., Brady, S.G. & Shattuck, S.O. 2010. Phylogeny and taxonomy of the Prenolepis genus-group of ants. Systematic Entomology 35: 118-131.


 * LaPolla, J.S., Brady, S.G. & Shattuck, S.O. 2010b. Designation of a neotype for Paratrechina currens Motschoulsky, 1863. Notulae Naturae 481: 1-2.


 * LaPolla, J.S., Cheng, C.H. & Fisher, B.L. 2010. Taxonomic revision of the ant genus Paraparatrechina in the Afrotropical and Malagasy regions. Zootaxa 2387: 1-27.


 * LaPolla, J.S. & Cover, S.P. 2005. New species of Pheidole from Guyana, with a list of species known from the country. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 131: 365-374.


 * LaPolla, J.S., Cover, S.P. & Mueller, U.G. 2002. Natural history of the mealybug-tending ant Acropyga epedana, with descriptions of the male and queen castes. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 128: 367-376.


 * LaPolla, J.S. & Dlussky, G.M. 2010. Review of fossil Prenolepis genus-group species. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 112: 258-273.


 * LaPolla, J.S., K.M. Kjer, T.R. Schultz and J.F. Bischoff. 2006. Phylogenetic Position of the Ant Genus Acropyga Roger (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) and the Evolution of Trophophoresy. Insect Systematics and Evolution 37(3): 197-212.


 * LaPolla, J.S. & Longino, J.T. 2006. An unusual new Brachymyrmex Mayr from Costa Rica, with implications for the phylogeny of the lasiine tribe group. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 108: 297-305.


 * LaPolla, J.S. & Fisher, B.L. 2005. A remarkable new species of Acropyga from Gabon, with a key to the Afrotropical species. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences (4) 56: 601-605.


 * LaPolla, J.S. & Sosa-Calvo, J. 2006. Review of the ant genus Rogeria in Guyana. Zootaxa 1330: 59-68.


 * Sosa-Calvo, J., T.R. Schultz, and J.S. LaPolla. 2010. A review of the dacetine ants of Guyana (Formicidae: Myrmicinae). Journal of Hymenoptera Research, 19(1): 12-43.