Michael Turelli

Research Interests

I am an evolutionary biologist whose current research focuses on Wolbachia, maternally inherited bacteria that occur in about half of all insect species, and the origin of species. I study the population and evolutionary biology of Wolbachia, especially in Drosophila and mosquito species. My Wolbachia collaborations include successful applications to controlling human diseases, especially dengue fever. I also study the origin of species, focusing on the role of geographical isolation and the evolutionary genetics of hybrid inviability and sterility. My Wolbachia and speciation research integrates mathematical models with newly generated and existing data.

Center Affiliations

• Center for Population Biology

Graduate Program Affiliations

• Population Biology Graduate Group