May Membership Meeting

Guest Presenter: Meredith Willmott

Meredith Willmott (@the_leafhopper) is an entomologist, artist, and second year PhD student at the University of Arizona, in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. Her research broadly focuses on species interactions, and her local study system is the ant-aphid mutualism. Meredith, originally from northern VA, is also a multi-media science communicator, who seeks to inspire an appreciation for the insect world through social media, scientific illustration, and knitting. Learning to knit when she was 8 sparked a lifelong passion for the craft, and when she was completing her M.S. in Philadelphia, she began designing insect themed knitting patterns to highlight the diversity and beauty of these organisms in a non-traditional medium. These patterns are all accompanied with information about the insects, and she currently works with Local Yarn Stores across the country to design them free knitting patterns featuring local, native insects. Check out her pattern at Birdhouse Yarns, featuring 4 different bees native to the Sonoran Desert!

Ravelry: @LeafhopperKnits