My interest in both theology and the natural history of parasitoid insects has inevitably led to pondering difficult questions about the existence of a loving Creator God. Were parasites, with all the suffering and death they cause, part of the original creation? There is no easy answer, but my students and I are examining new data about the origin and evolution of parasites using phylogenetics and applying this evidence to the philosophical problem of evil.
Environmental ethics and the beauty (or not-beauty sometimes) of animals has recently become another focus of my research as I learn more about how the Image of God relates to our relationship with nature.
Student researchers
2020
Amber Rhodes - Evidence for a Recent Transition into Parasitism within four Phyla of Marine Animals
Maria Wentley - Community, Autonomy, and the Emergence of Parasitism