Tim Hatten: President

Tim received a Ph.D. and M.S. in Entomology from the Universityof Idahoand Washington State University, respectively. His research focused on 1) the response of pest and natural enemies to management practices in agroecosystems, and 2) the epigeal beetle fauna of the highly fragmented Palouse Prairie and surrounding matrix habitats. After receiving his B.S. in Natural Resources Management from the Universityof Arizona, Tim spent two years in Niger, West Africawith the US Peace Corps doing village development projects for the Djarma tribe. He then worked for 10 years with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, six of these years acting as liaison to the US EPA's Agriculture Initiative. With the Agriculture Initiative, Tim worked in interdisciplinary teams developing private/public partnerships to solve agricultural pollution problems. Tim's leisure time is spent reading science fiction novels, collecting insects, and participating in all kinds of outdoor play.

Jill Maxwell: Web Developer

Jill has more than 20 years experience as a writer, editor, and web developer. She has a Masters of Arts degree from the University of California, Davis, in Community Development and a Bachelor of Science in Journalism and International Relations from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. In her free time, Jill enjoys x-county skiing, reading and community radio.

Russ Biggam: Taxonomist

Russ Biggam joined IE in June, 2009. He received a BA in Entomology and a minor in Biology from the University of Idaho (UI) in 1971. Since graduating Russ worked in both aquatic and terrestrial entomology labs for a number of UI professors including Drs. Brusven, Eigenbrode, Johanson, Swartzlander and McCaffrey. His primary responsibilities included sorting, identifying and cataloging aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates at all levels of taxonomic resolution. Over many of these years Russ also worked as a lab assistant in the aquatic entomology lab providing assistance to professors and students alike with specimen sampling, collection, preservation, sorting, identification and data input. See the publications list for some of Russ’s publications. In Russ’ spare time he collects stamps, DVDs and videos and builds models.

Roderick “Rod” Sprague IV: Taxonomist

Rod recently finished his Bachelors in Entomology at the University of Idaho. He has developed a thorough grounding in curatorial technique and direct exposure to the taxonomy of numerous insects and other arthropods while working for more than 15 years in the University of Idaho’s W. F. Barr Entomological Museum. Rod’s biological interests include other fields such as herpetology, botany and mycology, including identifying and eating native edible mushrooms. Rod is an electronics hobbyist. He has built numerous odd devices and is the sound engineer at the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Palouse (UUCP). He also is interested in astronomy, space flight and physics. He plays the pennywhistle, recorder and saxophone ands sings in the UUCP choir.

Chris Looney: Ecologist/Taxonomist

Chris received his Ph.D. in Environmental Science at the University of Idaho, where he studied the conservation ecology of the endangered Palouse Prairie. On the Palouse, his foci were the arthropod diversity associated with prairie remnants and native plants that persist in the modified landscape. He has also made significant contributions to mapping the existing Palouse Prairie remnants. Chris received a M.S. in Entomology from Washington State University. His thesis work was centered on cataloguing the insect diversity of the Hanford Nuclear Reservation. Chris' research interests center around conserving biological diversity of all taxa in places where humans live and work. Prior to entering the PhD program at UI, Chris spent two years with NOAA Fisheries in Boise, ID, working in interagency teams to mitigate threats to federally listed salmon species.

Rhea Hatten: Sorter

Rhea is a junior at Moscow High School. She enjoys taking entomological photos and being outdoors. Some of Rhea's photos may be found on this website. She is fascinated with science and hopes to pursue a career in biology someday .

Shay Hatten: Sorter

Shay is currently a student at Moscow Junior High School. In his spare time he enjoys watching movies and reading Stephen King novels.