Tilmon's keynote will share untold story of Maud Doria Haviland, pioneering woman entomologist
Annapolis, MD; June 11, 2025—Kelley J. Tilmon, Ph.D., professor of entomology at The Ohio State University, has been selected to deliver the Founders' Memorial Award Lecture at Entomology 2025, the Annual Meeting of the Entomological Society of America.
The Founders' Memorial Award was established in 1958 to honor the memory of scientists who made outstanding contributions to entomology. Each year at the ESA Annual Meeting, the recipient of the award delivers the Founders' Memorial Lecture, which posthumously honors the life and career of an influential entomologist.
At Entomology 2025, Tilmon's lecture will enlighten attendees on the life and career of Maud Doria Haviland (1889-1941), a groundbreaking British female entomologist and ornithologist who was an early leader in the movement that transformed the study of natural history into the science of ecology. She also conducted the first modern scientific research on tropical treehoppers (Membracidae) and was the first to experimentally document maternal care in treehoppers.
Haviland became a Fellow at Newnham College at the University of Cambridge in 1919, eventually publishing five books and 47 journal papers in her career. The breadth of her research included studies on various aphids, hemipterans, and parasitoids through the lenses of taxonomy, physiology, morphology, behavior, and ecology. Her achievements made her a pioneer at a time when barriers were high for women in science.
Haviland's story is not well known today, but Tilmon has sought to shed light on her as an "unsung hero" of 20th century entomology. Tilmon first noted Haviland's work while studying treehoppers for her master's degree in, and nearly 30 years later she took a sabbatical to conduct research on early women scientists in entomology, including Haviland.
Tilmon earned a B.A. in biology and English and an M.S. in entomology at the University of Delaware and a Ph.D. in entomology at Cornell University. After postdoctoral roles at the University of Delaware and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Tilmon served for 10 years in assistant and associate professor roles at South Dakota State University in the Plant Science Department. In 2016, she joined the Department of Entomology at Ohio State University, where she was promoted to professor. She is the state extension specialist in field crop entomology.
As a member of ESA, Tilmon has served for 15 years as a subject editor for Annals of the Entomological Society of America, twice served as program chair for the ESA North Central Branch Meeting, and also was a member of the ESA Renewal Advisory Committee in 2006 and 2007, which guided an overhaul of the Society's Branch and Section structure.
"Our theme for Entomology 2025 focuses on 'bridging generations with innovation, legacy, and passion,' and Dr. Tilmon has a clear passion for learning about the scientists who have shaped the history of our profession," says ESA President Lina Bernaola, Ph.D. "I am excited for her to share Maud Doria Haviland's story with a new generation of entomologists in November."
In recommending Tilmon for the Founders' Memorial Award, her colleague at Ohio State (and past Founders' Memorial Award Lecturer) Carol Anelli, Ph.D., noted that Tilmon is uniquely positioned to teach the entomology community about Haviland's life and work. "Dr. Tilmon's original research on Haviland is of the highest caliber," Anelli wrote. "Her new and as yet unpublished findings, synthesis, and contextualization of Haviland's life, in and outside of science, begs to be told."
Tilmon will deliver the Founders' Memorial Lecture, titled "Maud Doria Haviland's Life of Science, Service, and Adventure," at Entomology 2025 in Portland, Oregon, during the Awards Breakfast and Closing Plenary, beginning at 7 a.m. PT on Wednesday, November 12.
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CONTACT: Joe Rominiecki, jrominiecki@entsoc.org, 301-731-4535 x3009
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