Meet The Aquatic Entomology Lab!
Sally Entrekin
Sally is a Professor in the Entomology Department at Virginia Tech. Her team, the Virginia Tech Aquatic Entomology Lab, investigates macroinvertebrate-environmental interactions, freshwater quantity and quality, and ecosystem ecology. They study macroinvertebrate communities and ecosystem dynamics at the land-water interface to understand how people impact these elements of freshwater. The lab’s current projects span across disciplines that engage students and the public in water quality and quantity issues caused by the development of urban centers, agriculture, and resource extraction in streams and wetlands.
Sally is also an active member of the Society for Freshwater Science serving as President, Secretary and co-associate editor for the journal of Freshwater Science, Bridges, aimed at comparing and contrasting different topics across the aquatic sciences. At Virginia Tech, she teaches Aquatic Entomology and Freshwater Biomonitoring. Sally received her B.S. in Biology at Georgia Southwestern State University, an M.S. in Entomology at the University of Georgia and the Jones Ecological Research Center, and a Ph.D. in Biology at the University of Notre Dame.
Graduate Students
Sergio A. Sabat-Bonilla
Fall 2021
Sergio’s interests include macroinvertebrate ecology and their ecological responses to environmental stressors. Sergio worked on a wide range of ecological studies in relation to stressor-related responses during his bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University of Central Oklahoma. Sergio looked at the effects of urbanization on Barred Owls (Strix varia) and the impacts of the invasive Chinese Privet (Ligustrum sinense) within a new growth forest in central Oklahoma. He also researched the effects of urbanization on invertebrate community structure within Bromeliads (Guzmania) in Bosque Escuela la Olimpia and the surrounding community in Adjuntas, Puerto Rico. After obtaining his degree, Sergio did research on the ecological impact of invasive earthworms on ant-mediated seed dispersal within the forest understory and how this is shaped by the land-use history in northeastern Ohio. Furthermore, Sergio received his master’s degree in Biology from Georgia Southern University where he studied the community responses of aquatic macroinvertebrates to hydrological variations within experimental wetlands in the coastal plain of Georgia. His current research will examine the insect community functional response to best management practices in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. This work will provide a guideline as to predict the efficacy current best management practices have on freshwater stream ecosystems.
Rowan Scott
Fall 2024
Rowan Scott graduated with a dual major in Biochemistry and Environmental Science from Mount Holyoke College in 22’ where they investigated the carbon costs and environmental effects of clear-cutting for solar in Massachusetts. They proceeded to return as a chemistry laboratory instructor for two years before pursuing their graduate studies at Virginia Tech. During those summers, they served as a field technician for the US Forest Service and Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory on several different pollinator projects. These include Pollinator Habitats in Logged Landings (PHiLL), the Missouri Community Health Index (M-CHI), and the Irwin Lab’s long-term monitoring Bee and Flower Phenology Project where they conducted their own research project on the elevational shifts of Bombus sp. due to climate change. Rowan is now a PhD student in the Aquatic Entomology Lab at CALS, exploring macroinvertebrate community change due to freshwater mussel reintroduction through the Mussel Restoration Project in Reston, VA. Their research surrounds mussel and macroinvertebrate interactions, investigating the effects on community, nutrient cycling, development, and biomonitoring. This research will help improve mussel restoration in the future and assist in evaluating freshwater mussel’s potential as a best management practice in VA.
Brice Crum
Spring 2025
Brice Crum is a community ecologist and Master’s Student in the Aquatic Entomology Lab at Virginia Tech, studying how habitat heterogeneity influences macroinvertebrate diversity and function within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. His research interests include the impact of land use and other stressors on macroinvertebrate communities within aquatic systems, trophic ecology, invasive species, and functional ecology. During the summer of 2023 and 2024, Brice worked as a hydrologic technician and crew leader, respectively, for the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management, and performed watershed assessments on public lands in California, Oregon, and Washington. Brice graduated from Virginia Tech in 2023 with a degree in Biological Sciences with a concentration in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior. While at Virginia Tech, Brice worked on an undergraduate research project investigating the effects of invasive crayfish on a symbiotic relationship between branchiobdellid symbionts and native crayfish in the New River watershed. In his free time, Brice enjoys fly fishing, cycling, and reading.
David Speth
Spring 2025
David graduated from the University of Dayton in 2024 with a bachelor’s in biology. David has spent two field seasons working with the National Ecological Observatory Network and three summers with the EPA assisting in freshwater stream research. David is passionate about environmental conservation and loves running, hiking, and camping. David moved to Blacksburg and began his studies at Virginia Tech in January 2025. David’s research aims to identify how a mating disruption treatment used to limit the spread of spongy moth, an invasive pest, affects forested headwater streams and the insects present within. This mating disruption treatment has been successful in limiting the spread of the spongy moth, but its effect on these streams is unknown.
Gisella Depiazza
Spring 2026
Gisella graduated from the University of Florida with a B.S. in Forest Resources and Conservation and double minor in Wildlife Ecology and Botany in 2024. While there, she was a lab technician for the Florida Museum of Natural History (FLMNH) Herbarium working on the expansion of vascular and nonvascular plant collections. She also previously worked at the USGS Wetland Aquatic Research Center on the Nonindigenous Aquatic Species team. After graduating, she joined the Kawahara Lab at the McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity in FLMNH as a research technician studying the life history and silk properties of aquatic Florida moth species. She later worked as research technician for the Jones Center at Ichauway in the Forest Entomology and Microbiology Lab where she developed a research project comparing aquatic invertebrate populations across different waterways on property. Gisella is now a Master’s student in the Aquatic Entomology Lab at Virginia Tech investigating terrestrial-stream reciprocal flows and associated macroinvertebrate interactions. In her free time, Gisella enjoys cycling, frisbee, and reading.
Undergraduate Students
Christina Navarro
Virginia Tech, Class of 2026
Christina is a Wildlife Conservation major with a minor in Entomology, but her passion for insects is anything but minor! She enjoys aquatic entomology as well as pollinator ecology, and community ecology generally. She is very interested in how insects interact with their environment. She also hopes to foster a love of bugs in others through both casual conversation and professional communication.
Quinn Weigel
Virginia Tech, Class of 2026
Quinn is currently pursuing her BS in Biology at Virginia Tech and has a passion for insects and the occasional worm. As a Virginia native, she is inspired to focus on Appalachian ecology and rural ecology conservation and outreach. She enjoys connection with nature and advocates for others to do the same. Quinn hopes to continue a lifetime of entomology, whether amateur or professional.
Laboratory Staff
Megan Underwood
Lab & RESEARCH TECHNICIAN
Megan graduated from Virginia Tech in may of 2015 with a B.S. in Biological Sciences and a double minor in Entomology and Medicine in Society. She has been fascinated with insects throughout her life and her interest was particularly piqued while attending governor’s school where she conducted a project based in forensic entomology. While attending the aquatic entomology class at VT during her senior year, she was introduced to an open lab position in the Virginia Tech Water Resources Research Center and she has worked there ever since. She would like to work in ecological monitoring and restoration efforts in various aquatic environments in the future. In addition to her work at the water center, she recently joined the Entrekin lab to assist with a variety of projects including the Salty C Project and the USGS project. Her skills are primarily aquatic macroinvertebrate identification and sample collecting and processing, but in the future she would like to develop new skills by assisting with field work and processing new types of samples.
Former graduate students
DONYA MOHAMED. Fall 2023 to Summer 2025. “Integrating taxonomic meta-analysis and mussel physiology to assess secondary salinization in Appalachian headwaters and urban streams.”
KELLEY SINNING. Fall 2023 to Spring 2025. “Salt in the wound: trophic mismatches emerge between macroinvertebrate secondary production and basal food resources along a salinity gradient in central Appalachian headwaters.”
ELIZABETH SICKING. Spring 2023 to Spring 2025. “The influences of hydrology and vegetation on macroinvertebrate communities across space and time in seasonally inundated, geographically isolated wetlands.”
Kelly McIntyre. Spring 2017 to Spring 2021. “Impacts of atmospheric acid deposition and subsequent stream liming on macroinvertebrate secondary production in headwater streams of Shenandoah National Park” Kelly is currently working as the vegetable entomology lab master at Virginia Tech.
Danielle Braund. Fall 2017 to Fall 2019. “How the condition and capacity of headwater streams to transform and transport nutrients and the impact of excess phosphorus on macroinvertebrate community composition.”
Anastasia Mogilevski. Fall 2017 to Fall 2019. “How stream salinization alters leaf decomposition in streams via multiple detritivore pathways.”
David Mitchell. Fall 2008 to Fall 2009. “Structure and function of large wood in Ozark headwater streams and its effect on fish community structure.” Co-advised with Ginny Adams. David is currently an instructor at Ozarka College, Mountain View, AR.
Allyn dodd. Spring 2010 to Spring 2012. “Driving mechanisms of leaf decomposition based on wetland type and surrounding land use in White Oak Bayou watershed.” Allyn now working towards a Ph.D. in ecology at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.
Nicki Johnson. Spring 2010 to Spring 2012. “Effects of changing land use on macroinvertebrate communities in north-central Arkansas.” Nicki now works for an environmental consulting firm, GBMc, in Arkansas.
Julie Kelso. Spring 2010 to Fall 2012. “Macroinvertebrate community structure and their use of refuge in intermittent and perennial streams.” Julie is currently working on a Phd in ecology at Utah State, Utah.
Amanda Bates. Spring 2010 to Fall 2012. “Macroinvertebrate community structure and leaf decomposition in intermittent Ozark streams.” Amanda now works for the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality as an ecologist.
Chris Fuller. Fall 2011 to Fall 2013. He has worked on the NSF-funded Resource Ratio grant as an undergraduate at UCA. He began the project as a research assistant in fall of 2012. His research interests are changes in aquatic Diptera growth rates under varying levels of nitrogen and phosphorus resource concentrations. Chris is currently working as the laboratory manager for Lake Bella Vista, AR.
Adam Musto. Fall 2011 to Fall 2013. He began working in the laboratory as a junior at UCA. His interests are examining biological alterations of north-central Arkansas headwater streams along a gradient of natural gas development in the Fayetteville Shale. Adam is a full-time high school science teacher in Searcy, Arkansas.
Steve Polaskey. Fall 2012 to Spring 2015. Steve quantified the interaction between insect shredders and detrital microbial communities across a gradient of nutrient enrichment. He is currently a chemical and environmental analyst for the city of Boulder, CO.
Lucy Baker. Fall 2014 to Spring 2017. Lucy examined how watershed sensitivity interacts with human activities to influences biological responses to multiple anthropogenic stressors. She sampled macroinvertebrates in 40 headwater streams throughout north-central Arkansas.Lucy is now at the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality as TMDL coordinator.
Stephanie Stoughton. Spring 2015 to Fall 2017. Stephanie quantified nutrient transfer from urban tributaries and transformation (denitrification) in a rapidly urbanizing wetland-dominated watershed (White Oak Bayou, Arkansas). She currently works as the watershed manager at Elk County Conservation District, Pennsylvania.