Meghan A. Vankosky

Dr. Meghan A. Vankosky has worked on various aspects of biological control of agricultural pests during her academic training and as part of her current position as a research scientist at the Saskatoon Research and Development Centre. Projects include identifying potential natural enemies of an invasive weevil in Alberta (M.Sc. research project, 2008-2010), understanding tri-trophic interactions involving an omnivorous Hemipteran used for greenhouse biological control (Ph.D. thesis, 2010-2015), and the release of an imported parasitoid in an urban biological control program for Asian citrus psyllid in California (PDF, 2015-2016). Since joining Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), Dr. Vankosky has been an active member of the AAFC Biological Control Working Group (current Secretary), has continued research focused on biological control of field crop pests, and is the Chair of the Prairie Pest Monitoring Network. She advocates for beneficial insects, including predators and parasitoids, in her research and in extension activities. She authored or co-authored 22 peer-reviewed manuscripts, one book chapter, over 50 presentations (invited and submitted to conferences and meetings), gives regular guest lectures at major prairie universities, and has contributed to more than 100 reports and media articles since 2016.