Gregory K. Davis

Gregory K. Davis is an Associate Professor of Biology at Bryn Mawr College, conducting research on the evolutionary developmental biology of insects with a focus on pea aphid phenotypic plasticity.

His educational background includes:

• Ph.D. from the University of Chicago
• M.A. from the University of Pittsburgh
• B.S. from Duke University

Dr. Davis investigates environmentally cued reproductive polyphenism in pea aphids (Acyrthosiphon pisum), where day-length variations trigger divergent developmental pathways for sexual versus asexual reproduction. His lab examines molecular mechanisms of pattern formation adaptation in modified oogenesis/embryogenesis and the genetic switch specifying reproductive fate, while contextualizing aphids' historical significance in early 20th-century genetics and embryology.

He mentors undergraduate researchers in laboratory investigations of developmental plasticity, providing hands-on experience in evolutionary biology methodologies.

The Davis Lab utilizes pea aphids as a model system to explore genome-environment interactions driving discrete phenotypic outcomes, emphasizing rapid embryonic development and yolk-free oogenesis in asexual morphs.