Hereford, Arizona

I earned my BS and MS in Biology at Midwestern State University (Wichita Falls, Texas) in 1989 & 1991, respectively. I gained a great foundation in organismal biology there. My Masters thesis was on the Cerambycidae of North Texas. I completed my Ph.D. in Entomology (1996) at the University of Kansas (Lawrence, Kansas) with a dissertation that treated the genera of one of the most perplexing tribes in Cerambycidae, the Elaphidiini.

I worked 20 years for USDA (Agriculture Research Service) at the Smithsonian Institution as a researcher on beetles (primarily Cerambycidae, but also Chrysomelidae and Curculionidae). I have published over 70 papers including 7 books on Cerambycidae and Chrysomelidae.

My current position (started in 2016) is an Entomologist at the port of Douglas, Arizona with USDA (Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service). I live an hour from there in a 5-acre oasis at the base of the Huachuca Mountains in Hereford, Arizona.

I married my life partner, Norman Woodley (specialist on Diptera and Buprestidae), right before moving to Arizona. We had been together for 18 years at that time, so we figured that we were ready to tie the knot! We are both loving our life here in Arizona where we can collect right in our yard and go birding when the insects aren't flying.

In 2023 I cofounded an entomological supply company, www.entoquip.com

My business partner and I spent most of 2022 developing the entolight, a 32 watt UV-LED light with 365-395 nm UV spectrum. In less than 2 months of being open, we sold over 150 lights. We aim to have more products in the coming years.