By Kathy Keatley-Garvey

Professor Jason Bond of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, described as “a powerhouse in the world of systematics and arachnology,” received the 2025 Systematics, Evolution, and Biodiversity Award from the Pacific Branch, Entomological Society of America (PBESA) at its meeting last week in Salt Lake City.

Bond serves as the Evert and Marion Schlinger Endowed Chair in the Department of Entomology and Nematology, director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology, and associate dean, UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. He is president-elect of the American Arachnological Society.

His colleagues and students praised his exemplary research, teaching, mentoring, public service, and outreach activities

“Jason is an internationally acclaimed, cutting-edge researcher known as an exemplary professor, mentor and collaborator, and hailed for his highly successful outreach efforts that stretch across the state, nation and beyond,” wrote nominator molecular geneticist and physiologist Joanna Chiu, professor and chair of the Department of Entomology and Nematology. “He is a powerhouse in the world of systematics and arachnology.”

In his research, Bond specializes in the evolutionary diversification of terrestrial arthropods, specifically spiders, millipedes, and tenebrionid beetles; and researches the landscape scale genomics of California species, with an emphasis on understanding the impact of global change on biodiversity.

He is also a principal investigator associated with the California Conservation Genomics Project, a state-funded initiative with a single goal: to produce the most comprehensive, multispecies, genomic dataset ever assembled to help manage regional biodiversity.

Bond is the co-editor-in-chief of the ESA journal Insect Systematics and Diversity (ISD), He is also associate editor of Systematic Biology; academic editor of PeerJ; and former associate editor of numerous other journals.

Colleague, Professor Christiane Weirauch of UC Riverside, commented: “Dr. Bond has served as a reviewer for virtually every journal in the area of systematic biology and taxonomy and is called upon as a panel member by the National Science Foundation on a regular basis, speaking to his national and international reputation in the field of systematics.”

Bond is the third UC Davis recipient of the award since 2014 when UC Davis distinguished professor (now emerita) Lynn Kimsey, then director of the Bohart Museum, won. UC Davis doctoral alumnus (2016) Marek Boroweic of the Phil Ward lab and now an assistant professor in insect systematics at Colorado State University, won it in 2017.

Bond joined the UC Davis faculty in 2018 from Auburn University, where he directed the Auburn University Museum of Natural History (2011—2016) and served as professor and chair of the Auburn Department of Biological Sciences (2016—2018). He played a major role in the design and construction of a new state-of-the-art collections facility. He also directed the Alabama Natural Heritage Program, guiding its conservation activities of endangered and threatened species in the Southeast.

A native of Tennessee, Jason received his bachelor’s degree in biological sciences, cum laude, in 1993 from Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, and his master’s degree in biology in 1995 from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg. He earned his doctorate in evolutionary systematics and genetics in 1999 from Virginia Tech. A veteran of the U.S. Army, he served as a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crew chief.

“Jason’s modern biodiversity research program is cutting-edge and of general importance, as Jason relentlessly learns and incorporates novel techniques and analyses into his research efforts,” wrote Professor Marshal Hedin, director of the San Diego State University Museum, in his letter of support. “He is as good as they come in the realm of Arthropod diversity and evolution, has a strong record of student mentorship and teaching, and is uniquely devoted in his service to academics, the Entomological Society of America, the American Arachnological Society, and the broader scientific community.”

PBESA encompasses 11 Western states and parts of Canada and Mexico and U.S. territories.