I studied my three academic degrees in biology (B.Sc + teaching certificate, M.Sc and Ph.D) at the University of Haifa. My Ph.D was on insect ecology and my post-doctorate at Penn State University was on plant-insect interactions. Today, my studies come under the field of nature conservation. In my view, the way in which humans manage their natural resources is a fascinating demonstration of bad management. The easiest way to imperil our children’s future is to continue our “business as usual” strategy we have been adhering to since the beginning of the industrial age: unsustainable exploitation of natural resources and the convenient overlooking of our negative effects on the environment. If we wish to avoid a grim future, we should not use yesterday’s strategies for the management of tomorrow’s crises. Instead, we must start thinking out of the box, developing novel strategies for managing the natural resources our existence on earth depends upon. In my studies, I aim for a better understanding of human-induced changes in natural ecosystems and for the development of active management strategies that will improve natural ecosystems’ endurance, thus preserving their ability to provide essential ecosystem services in a future of increasing stress and uncertainty.

• Novel strategies for strengthening ecosystem resistance to climate change
• Invasive species
• House cats and free-roaming cats as an environmental threat
• Nature conservation
• Human exposure to pesticides

• Gish M, Dafni A, Inbar M. (2010) Mammalian herbivore breath alerts aphids to flee host plant. Current Biology 20: R628-R629.
• Ribak G, Gish M, Weihs D, Inbar M (2013) Adaptive aerial righting during the escape dropping of wingless pea aphids. Current Biology 23: R102-R103.
• Gish M, Mescher MC, De Moraes CM (2015) Targeted predation of extrafloral nectaries by insects despite localized chemical defense. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 282: 20151835.
• Gish M, Ben-Ari M, Inbar M (2017) Direct consumptive interactions between mammalian herbivores and plant-dwelling invertebrates: prevalence, significance and prospectus. Oecologia 183: 347-352.
• Gish M, Inbar M (2018) Standing on the shoulders of giants: young aphids piggyback on adults when searching for a host plant. Frontiers in Zoology 15: 49.

• Introduction to Life Sciences A – Biology
• Introduction to Life Sciences B – Ecology
• Nature Conservation