Museum Graduate Student Publishes Research
A college student working in the Museum’s Department of Invertebrate Zoology was the lead author on the first formal survey of praying mantises in Rwanda. Riley Tedrow, a graduate student at Case Western Reserve pursuing field research for the Museum under the direction of curator and co-author Dr. Gavin Svenson, participated in two surveys across four locations in Rwanda.
The survey, conducted in 2013 and 2014, revealed a 155% increase in the known number of praying mantis species in the African country. It also yielded the discovery and description of one new praying mantis species – Dystacta tigrifrutex, which means “bush tiger praying mantis.”
While conducting the survey Tedrow helped collect 739 insects representing 41 mantis species from Akagera National Park, Nyungwe National Park, Volcanoes National Park and the Arboretum de Ruhande at the National University of Rwanda.
“This survey highlights a need for more thorough sampling of the insect fauna of Rwanda,” said lead author Tedrow. “Undiscovered diversity is still out there—strange, wonderful and fascinating creatures whose stories I want to tell. With greater levels of biodiversity recorded in this country, we can inform conservation decisions in these important African national parks.”
Watch the video below to learn more.