Rodrigo Cogni

Birth date: October 31st, 1978

Citizenship: Brazilian

University address: Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, 650 Life Sciences Building, Stony Brook , NY 11794-5245

E-mail: rcogni@life.bio.sunysb.edu and rodrigocogni@gmail.com

1997 - 2001: Biology undergraduate program, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (Unicamp), Brazil.

2001 - 2003: Ecology Master program, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (Unicamp), Brazil. Thesis topic: Foraging ecology and recruitment in the ant Gnamptogenys moelleri (Ponerinae: Ectatommini). Advisor: Professor Paulo S. Oliveira

2003 - 2004: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology PhD Program, University of Michigan, USA. Advisor: Professor Douglas J. Futuyma.

2004 - present: Ecology and Evolution PhD Program, Stony Brook University, USA. Advisor: Professor Douglas J. Futuyma.

I have a broad interest in evolutionary biology and ecology. I am interested in evolution of ecological interactions through coevolution. I have studied insect foraging behavior, ecology and behavior of ants, ant-plant mutualisms, and plant herbivore coevolution. The concept of coevolution encompasses several patterns and processes occurring at different scales of biological organization. In this sense, I am interested in the integration of different disciplines to empirically unravel coevolutionary dynamics. For my PhD dissertation, I am using a study system that is amenable to experimental manipulation: the alkaloid bearing legume Crotalaria pallida and its seed predator, the arctiid moth Utetheisa ornatrix. I integrate field, greenhouse and laboratory experiments, chemical ecology, molecular ecology and phylogeography to answer questions such as: (1) How do coevolving interactions vary geographically? (2) How are populations locally adapted to the populations of species that they interact with? (3) How does gene flow influence local adaptation of coevolving interactions? (4) What traits do mediate the interaction among coevolving species? In the future, I plan to integrate phylogenetics and molecular evolution into my research program to better understand coevolutionary dynamics.

Cogni, R., 2009. Biotic resistance to plant invasion? A native specialist herbivore shows preference for and higher fitness on an introduced host. Biotropica in press.

Cogni, R. & D. J. Futuyma, 2009. Local adaptation in a plant herbivore interaction depends on the spatial scale. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 97: 494-502.

Cogni, R. & P. S. Oliveira, 2004. Recruitment behavior during foraging in the neotropical ant Gnamptogenys moelleri (Formicidae: Ponerinae): does the type of food matter? Journal of Insect Behavior 17: 443-458.

Cogni, R. & P. S. Oliveira, 2004. Patterns in foraging and nesting ecology in the arboreal neotropical ponerine ant, Gnamptogenys moelleri. Insects Sociaux 51: 123-130.

Bonato, V., R. Cogni & E. M. Venticinque, 2003. Ants nesting on Cecropia purpurascens (Cecropiaceae) in Central Amazonia : Influence of tree height, domatia volume and food bodies. Sociobiology 42: 719-727.

Cogni, R., A. V. L. Freitas & P. S. Oliveira, 2003. Interhabitat differences in ant activity on plant foliage: Ants at extrafloral nectaries of Hibiscus pernambucensis in a sandy and mangrove forest. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata 107: 125-131.

Cogni, R., G. W. Fernandes, D. L. M. Vieira, C. E. Marinelli, C. F. Jurinitz, B. R. Guerra, J. Zuanon & E. M. Venticinque, 2003. Galling insects (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) survive inundation during host plant flooding in Central Amazonia. Biotropica 35: 115-119.

Cogni, R., A. V. L. Freitas & B. F. Amaral-Filho, 2002. Influence of prey size on predation success by Zelus longipes (Heteroptera: Reduviidae). Journal of Applied Entomology 126: 74-78.

Guimarães, P. R. & R. Cogni, 2002. Seed cleaning of Cupania vernalis (Sapindaceae) by ants: edge effect in a highland forest in Southeast Brazil. Journal of Tropical Ecology 18: 303-307.

Cogni, R. & A. V. L. Freitas, 2002. The ant assemblage visiting extrafloral nectaries of Hibiscus pernambucensis (Malvaceae) in a mangrove forest in Southeast Brazil (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Sociobiology 40: 373-383.

Cogni, R., R. L. G. Raimundo & A. V. L. Freitas, 2000. Daily activity of ants associated with the extrafloral nectaries of Turnera ulmifolia (Turneraceae) in a suburban area of Southeast Brazil . Entomologist's Monthly Magazine 136: 141-147.