Biography
Research Areas
I am an organismal biologist broadly interested in questions related to the evolution of symbioses, evolution of agriculture in insects, and patterns of insect diversity. My lab primarily focuses on fungus-farming ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), which engage in a multipartite symbiosis with basidiomycete fungi, ascomycete fungi, and actinomycete bacteria. The complex interrelationships between fungus-farming ants and their fungal partners make them an excellent model system for exploring questions about the evolution of symbiosis along the mutualism-parasitism continuum, coevolutionary processes, and the evolutionary dynamics of conflict and cooperation. The Sosa-Calvo AntLab employs an integrative approach, combining traditional morphological tools with cutting-edge genomic methods, field-based observation, museum and herbarium collections, and natural history data to address these questions.
In addition, my lab uses phylogenomic methods to investigate the evolutionary history of parasitic wasps and selected bee lineages, with the goal of uncovering biogeographic patterns and the drivers of diversification.
Publications
- Schultz, TR, J Sosa-Calvo, M Kweskin, M Lloyd, B Dentinger, P Kooij, S Rehner, E Vellinga, A Rodrigues, Q Montoya, H Fernandez-Marin, C Leal-Dutra, S Solomon, A Jesovnik, M Bacci, Jr., H Vasconcelos, C Rabeling, BC Faircloth, V Doyle (2024). The coevolution of fungus-ant agriculture. Science 386: 105–110 https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adn7179
- Sosa-Calvo, J, M Forshage, and Buffington, ML. (2024) Circumscription of the Ganaspis brasiliensis species complex (Hymenoptera: Figitidae), and the description of two new species parasitizing the spotted wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii Matsumura (Diptera: Drosophilidae). Journal of Hymenoptera Research 97: 441–470 https://doi.org/10.3897/jhr.97.118567
- Robles Lopez, K, J Sosa-Calvo, JM Calixto, EZ de Albuquerque, KM Baudier (2024). One ant’s trash is another ant’s treasure: Army ant middens provide resources for diverse ant assemblages. Biotropica 56, 58–70 https://doi.org/10.1111/btp.13280
- Gotting, K, DS May, J Sosa-Calvo, L Khadempour, CB Francouer, AB Lopez, MW Thairu, S Sandstrom, CM Carlson, M Chevrette, A Rodrigues, MT Pupo, TS Bugni, TR Schultz, JS Johnston, NM Gerardo, CR Currie. (2022) Genomic diversification of the specialized parasite of the fungus-growing ant symbiosis. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 119(51): e221309611www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2213096119
- Hanisch, PE, J Sosa-Calvo, TR Schultz. (2022) The last piece of the puzzle? Phylogenetic position and natural history of the monotypic fungus-farming ant genus Paramycetophylax. Insect Systematics and Diversity 6(1): 11 https://doi.org/10.1093/isd/ixab029
- Barrera, C, J Sosa-Calvo, TR Schultz, C Rabeling, M Bacci. (2022) Phylogenomic reconstruction reveals new insights into the evolution and biogeography of Atta leaf-cutting ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Systematic Entomology 47(1): 13–35. https://doi.org/10.1111/syen.12513
- Li, H, C-Y Sun, Y Fang, CM Carlson, H Xu, A Jesovnik, J Sosa-Calvo, R Zarnowski, HA Bechtel, JH Fournelle, DR Andes, TR Schultz, PUPA Gilbert, CR Currie. (2020) Biomineral armor in leaf-cutter ants. Nature Communications 11, 5792. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-19566-3
- Solomon, SE, C Rabeling, J Sosa-Calvo, CT Lopes, UG Mueller, HL Vasconcelos, M Bacci, TR Schultz. (2019) Molecular phylogenetics of Trachymyrmex (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) ants and their fungal cultivars provide insights into the evolution of higher attine agriculture. Systematic Entomology 44: 939–956. https://doi.org/10.1111/syen.12370
- Sosa-Calvo, J, F Fernández, TR Schultz. (2019) Phylogeny and evolution of the cryptic fungus-farming ant genus Myrmicocrypta F. Smith (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) inferred from multi-locus data. Systematic Entomology 44: 139–162. https://doi.org/10.1111/syen.12313
- Li, H, J Sosa-Calvo, H Horn, C Rabeling, MT Pupo, J Clardy, TR Schultz, CR Currie. (2018) Convergent evolution of complex structures for ant-bacterial defensive symbiosis in fungus-farming ants. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 115(42): 10720–10725. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1809332115
- Sosa-Calvo, J, TR Schultz, A Jesovnik, R Dahan, C Rabeling. (2018) Evolution, systematics, and natural history of a new genus of cryptobiotic fungus-growing ants. Systematic Entomology 43: 549–567. https://doi.org/10.1111/syen.12289
- Montoya, QV., NM Gerardo, MJS Martiarena, C Soli-Lemus, R Kriebel, TR Schultz, J Sosa-Calvo, A Rodriguez (2025) Digging into the evolutionary history of the fungus-growing-ant symbiont, Escovopsis (Hypocreaceae). Communications Biology 8:1340. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-025-08654-z
- Oberski, JT. et al. (2025) Ant systematics: past, present, and future. Insect Systematics and Diversity, 9(4): 11. https://doi.org/10.1093/isd/ixaf025
Highlights
Aug 2025: The Sosa-Calvo AntLab opens at UCF! Go Knights…Charge on!
Education
- PhD. Entomology, 2015– University of Maryland at College Park
- MS. Entomology, 2007– University of Maryland at College Park
- BS. Biology and Environmental Education, 2002– Universidad del Quindio, Colombia