Victor H. Gonzalez Betancourt, Ph.D.
- Associate Teaching Professor
- Courtesy Researcher, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
- Research Associate, Biodiversity Institute
- Faculty Associate, Center for Latin American & Caribbean Studies
Contact Info
Lawrence
Personal Links
Biography —
Dr. Gonzalez earned his BS in Biology from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia in Bogotá and his PhD in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Kansas. He completed his postdoctoral research at the USDA Pollinating Insect-Biology, Management, and Systematics Research Laboratory in Logan, UT. His research focuses on bee phylogeny and evolution, documenting patterns of diversity, and investigating how bees respond to environmental stressors.
He has served as a faculty fellow at KU’s Center for Teaching Excellence and was named a Fulbright Scholar in biodiversity and sustainable development. He is actively involved in synergistic activities with government and non-government organizations, focusing on public education in conservation, biodiversity, and ecosystem services.
Teaching —
Dr. Gonzalez aims to develop a research-driven curriculum that fosters student engagement and promotes meaningful experiences both inside and outside the classroom. His approach includes merging arts and sciences, experiential-based learning, discovery-driven experiences, integrating learning technologies, and using near-peer teaching methods.
Selected Publications —
Representative publications (* undergraduate student co-author)
Gonzalez VH, *Herbison N, *Robles G, *Panganiban T, *Haefner L, Tscheulin T, Petanidou T, Hranitz J (2024) Bees display limited acclimation capacity for heat tolerance. Biology Open 13:bio060179.
Gonzalez VH, Mattingly S, *Wilhelm J, Hemingson D (2024) Using artificial intelligence to grade practical laboratory examinations: sacrificing students’ learning experiences for saving time? Anatomical Sciences Education 17: 932–936.
Vitale N, VH Gonzalez (2024) Looking for a signal: how well do specialist and generalist bees track preferred host plants over time? Arthropod-Plant Interactions.
Gonzalez VH, *Manweiler R, Smith AR, Oyen K, *Cardona D, Wcislo WT (2023) Low heat tolerance and high desiccation resistance in nocturnal bees and the implications for nocturnal pollination under climate change. Scientific Reports 13:22320.
Gonzalez VH, Oyen K, Ávila O, Ospina R (2022) Thermal limits of Africanized honey bees are influenced by temperature ramping rate but not by other experimental conditions. Journal of Thermal Biology 110: 103369.
Gonzalez VH, Oyen K, Aguilar M, Herrera A, Martin RD, Ospina R (2022) High thermal tolerance in high-elevation species and laboratory-reared colonies of tropical bumble bees. Ecology and Evolution 12: e9560.
Wilhelm J, Mattingly S, Gonzalez VH (2022) Perceptions, satisfactions, and performance of undergraduate students during Covid-19 emergency remote teaching. Anatomical Sciences Education 15(1): 42–56.
Gonzalez VH, Griswold T, Praz CJ, Danforth B (2012) Phylogeny of the bee family Megachilidae (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) based on adult morphology. Systematic Entomology 37: 261‒286.