Lawrence Gilbert

Lawrence E. Gilbert (b. 1942) is an American biologist, known for his discovery of Gilbertian mimicry.

Early life

Lawrence E. Gilbert was born in Laredo, Texas in 1942. His father was a Presbyterian minister. He grew up in different towns around Texas as his father moved between churches. He graduated from high school in West Columbia, Texas. In 2009, Gilbert became professor of biology and director of the Brackenridge Field Laboratory at the University of Texas at Austin.

His research interests include the biological control of fire ants with flies of the Phoridae family, described the passion flower Passiflora microstipula. MacDougal named another species in the same genus Passiflora gilbertiana after him.

Gilbertian mimicry

Gilbert is known for his discovery of Gilbertian mimicry in Passiflora plants. This involves the plants growing small structures that resemble the eggs of Heliconius butterflies, whose caterpillars feed on Passiflora. Gilbert realised that the structures signal to egg-laying female Heliconius that the plant has already been occupied by another female, with the implication that the existing eggs will hatch first and consume the available food. Females have therefore evolved to avoid such plants, just as the plants have evolved to give a convincing signal. Gilbert described the mechanism as a "coevolved mutualism" in 1975. The biologist Georges Pasteur named the rare mimicry system after Gilbert.

Personal life

Gilbert is married to the poet and artist Christine Mast. They have two sons.