Yukie Sato, PhD
Assistant Professor
Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba
Mountain Science Center, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8577, JAPAN
TRIOS,
ResearchGate,
Google Scholar Citations,
Publons
Research Fields
Behavioral Ecology / Evolutionary Ecology / Applied Entomology and Zoology / Acarology
Key words
Speciation / Sexual selection / Mating strategy / Geographic variation / Sociality / Biological control
Research Interests
The general aim of my research is to reveal the mechanisms of ecological diversification at the level of species and populations, as well as speciation mechanisms. Furthermore, I deal with behavioral variations in different individuals of the same population. In particular, I focus on social behavior and mating behavior in spider mites. Spider mites are small arthropod herbivores less than 1 mm in length. They are good model organisms because they complete their development (egg to adult) in a short period (ca. 5 - 20 days under optimal conditions) and they can be mass-reared in small spaces. These advantages allow investigation of the following projects:
・Kin selection and kin competition
・Geographic variation in lethal male-male combat
・Reproductive isolation in spider mites
・Evolution of alternative male mating tactics
・Evolution of social behavior in spider mites
・Importance of characteristics of "armor (Exoskeleton)"in evolution of male combat in arthropods
（Collaborative research project withProf Machida's laboratory for the Insect Comparative Embryology Lab）
Message to students
Undergraduate and graduate students interested in these research projects are welcome. I may be able to assist students who have their own research projects, if the research projects are associated with my field. If you are interested in, please contact me.
