Gene Hall

I am interested in museum collections as active and accessible resources to preserve and document our planet’s biodiversity, using specimens and associated data for scientific research and public outreach worldwide. I oversee the University of Arizona Insect Collection and provide insect and other arthropod identifications as part of the UA Cooperative Extension's Insect Diagnostics Clinic. My research focuses on the evolutionary biology of insects, primarily the systematics, taxonomy, and biogeography of beetles, most notably Ptiliidae (featherwing beetles), Hydroscaphidae (skiff beetles), Sphaeriusidae (minute bog beetles). I also study fossil insects associated with packrat middens to help us better understand the past & recent fauna, flora, and climate of southwestern deserts