Isreal with friend. |
Isreal Del Toro Undergraduate Researcher Dept. of Biological Sciences University of Texas at El Paso El Paso, Texas 79968 Phone: (915) 747-5443 |
I am currently working on a Bachelors of Science degree with an emphasis on the ecological sciences. Aside from my interest in myrmecology and general entomology, I am also interested in the geological sciences and fields such as insect paleontology which combine both the geologic sciences and my interests in entomology. I intend to graduate within the next 2 years and continue my education in these disciplines in graduate school. Within my research, I have developed an interest in taxonomy and systematics; future areas that I would like to explore include biogeography, molecular systematics, insect morphology and insect ecology. Within the next year I will be traveling to Tabasco, Mexico, as part of an international study abroad program offered in UTEP where I will focus my curriculum on ecology, evolution, and entomology. Another research activity that I have participated in was a 3-week myrmecology collecting trip in the country of Ecuador; next summer I will be traveling to Peru to do the same type of collecting.
1. Erect hairs on dorsum of gaster short (or absent) and of approximately equal length . . . . . . . 2 Many long erect hairs present on dorsum of gaster mixed with shorter erect hairs, some hairs nearly as long as those on pronotum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 3 2. Few erect hairs on Pronotum smooth and lacking sculpturing on dorsal side of mesosoma, metanotal suture strongly depressed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . L. luctuosum Wheeler 3. The antennal scapes surpassing posterior margin of the head by amount at least twice as great as the maximum thickness of the scape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . L. apiculatum Mayr 4. Antennal scapes of largest workers surpassing the posterior margin of head by amount which does not exceed the maximum thickness of the scape usually bicolor; known only from collections near the Pacific coast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . L. occidentale Wheeler W.M.