Dr. Daniel A. Herms, vice president for research and development at The Davey Tree Expert Company, was elected as Fellow in 2018. He is internationally known for research on theory and ecology of plant defense and its application to management of insect pests of trees and shrubs.
Herms was born in Columbus, Ohio, in 1959 and raised in Portsmouth, Ohio, where he worked for the Herms Floral Company and Greenhouses. He received his B.S. in landscape horticulture from Ohio State University (OSU), where his interest in entomology was sparked by the animated teaching of Dave Horn. He earned an M.S. in 1984 from OSU with dual majors in entomology and horticulture, conducting his research in the lab of Dave Nielsen. From 1984 to 1996, Herms worked at Dow Gardens, a public display garden in Midland, Michigan, directing the IPM and research programs. While working at Dow Gardens, he received his Ph.D. in 1991 from Michigan State University (MSU) in entomology and the ecology and evolutionary biology graduate program, where he was mentored by Bill Mattson and appointed as an adjunct faculty member in 1992. Herms
joined the Department of Entomology at OSU in Wooster in 1997 and was promoted to full professor in 2008. In 2018, he was hired by The Davey Tree Expert Company, the world's largest full-service tree care firm, as
vice president of research and development.
Herms has published 256 papers, including 96 articles in peer-reviewed journals, 31 book and proceeding chapters, and 129 outreach and extension publications and has garnered more than $10 million to support his work. He has been major advisor to 18 graduate students, served on the advisory committee of 39 graduate students, and supervised nine post-docs. His research with students and collaborators explores the ecophysiology of tree defense, including chemical ecology and response to abiotic factors as well as ecological impacts of invasive forest insects. His applied research and extension programs address IPM in urban forests, ornamental landscapes, and nurseries.
Herms has presented or coauthored 167 invited and 317 contributed research presentations and 448 extension talks. He taught or co-taught The Nature and Practice of Science and Insect Ecology and Evolution at MSU and OSU, Forest and Shade Tree Entomology at OSU, and served the OSU Department of Entomology as graduate studies chair (2004-2006), associate chair (2006-2011), interim chair (2012), and chair (2013-2016). He has served as subject editor for Environmental Entomology, associate editor for Arboriculture and Urban Forestry, coordinator of the International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) working group on tree resistance to insects, and on USDA APHIS science advisory panels for emerald ash borer and Asian longhorned beetle. Major recognitions include the Richard W. Harris Authorship Award from the International Society of Arboriculture (2013), the ESA Distinguished Achievement Award in Horticultural Entomology (2014), and election as Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (2014).
His wife Cathy received her M.S. in forest entomology from MSU, and they enjoy birding, hiking, boating, paddling, scuba diving, and butterfly gardening.
(updated August, 2018)