LARRY J. ORSAK, Ph.D.

Education & Training Advisor, World Wildlife Fund-USA

P.O. Box 11, Moro, Southern Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea

E-mail madangunit@datec.com.pg, lors@chevron.com

EDUCATION

• Ph.D., Biology, University of California, Berkeley.
• B.S., Biology (honors), University of California, Irvine.

FIELD WORK

Papua New Guinea (community expression of antipredator defenses in moths, use of moths as biodiversity indicators for conservation, plant-insect interaction of birdwing butterflies); California (autoecology of rare and endangered lycaenid butterflies, including plant-insect interactions, population structure); Arizona (autoecology of lubber grasshoppers, including thermoregulation, population structure, antipredator strategies); French Polynesia, Australia (mate selection behavior of field crickets).

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

• WWF -USA, Education & Training Advisor, 1998-
• Christensen Research Institute, Madang, Papua New Guinea Director 1993-1997
• Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, Honolulu, Hawai‘i Research Associate, 1988-
• Training Papua New Guinean field assistants and parataxonomists, currently supervising 8 parataxonomists, 1987-
• Leader of Earthwatch expeditions, 1987-1991, 1995-
• Consultant, Papua New Guinea Department of Environment and Conservation, 1992-1995
• Wau Ecology Institute, Wau, Papua New Guinea Assistant Director, 1990-1992
• Consultant, German Development Service, 1991-1992
• Scientific Methods, Inc., Durham, California, Integrated pest management specialist (orchard crops) 1986-1990
• Institute of Ecology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia Administrator, National Park Service Cooperative Parks Study Unit 1985-1986
• Consultant, Franklin Mint, 1980-1983

RESEARCH INTERESTS

Conservation of rare and endangered species; ecology and taxonomy of Lepidoptera, particularly their use as biodiversity indicators; education oriented towards tropical conservation; expression of antipredator defenses in moths; integrated pest management.

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

Orsak, L.J. (1981) (ed) Endangered Insects of the World. Proceedings of a Symposium at the 1976 International Congress of Entomology, Washington, D.C. Atala 6, 1-62.

Greene, E., Orsak, L.J. & Whitman, D.W. (1987) A tephritid fly mimics the territorial display of its jumping spider predators. Science 236, 310-312.

Orsak, L.J. & Whitman, D.W. (1986) Chromatic polymorphism in Callophrys mossii bayensis larva (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae): Spectral characterization, short-term color shifts and natural morph fequencies. Journal of Research on the Lepidoptera 25, 188-201.

Whitman, D.W., Orsak, L.J. & Greene, E. (1988) Spider mimicry in fruit flies: further experiments on the deterence of jumping spiders (Araneae: Salticidae) by Zonosemata vittigera (Coquillett). Annals of the Entomological Society of America 81, 532-536.

Orsak, L.J. (1992) Saving the World's Largest Butterfly, Queen Alexandra's Birdwing (Ornithoptera alexandrae ): A Model "Conservation Through Development" Project for Papua New Guinea. Papua New Guinea Department of Environment & Conservation. 4 vols, 752 pp.

Orsak, L.J. (1993) Killing butterflies to save butterflies: a tool for tropical forest conservation in Papua New Guinea. News of the Lepidopterists Society 1993(3), 71-80.

Slone, T. H. , Orsak, L. J. & Malver, O. (1997) A comparison of price, rarity and cost of butterfly specimens: Implications for the insect trade and for habitat conservation. Ecological Economics 21, 77-85.