Arianne Cease is an American ecologist and entomologist known for her research on the ecology and management of grasshoppers and locusts, particularly in the context of global change biology. She is an Associate Professor at Arizona State University and director of the the Global Locust Initiative. Her work focuses on how environmental factors—especially nutrient availability, climate variability, and land use—shape insect behavior, population dynamics, and the formation of locust swarms. Cease has contributed to advancing a nutritional ecology framework for understanding locust phase change, linking shifts in plant nutrient composition to outbreaks of pest species. She has conducted field and laboratory research across multiple continents, including Africa, Asia, and North America, often working in collaboration with international partners and local stakeholders. Her research aims to inform more sustainable, preventative approaches to locust management, reducing reliance on reactive pesticide use. Cease is also active in interdisciplinary and applied research initiatives that connect ecology, agriculture, and policy, and she has played a key role in building collaborative networks focused on food security and pest management.
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- Tahir, S.M., Lichaa, T., Jaronski, S., Shniderman, R., Harrison, J.F., Cease, A.J., 2026. Protein-biased diets enhance immune responses but increase fungal susceptibility in desert locusts. Journal of Experimental Biology 229:jeb250955. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.250955
- Touré, M., Fall, A., Burnham, A., Beye, A., Badiane, S., Lawton, D., Cease, A.J., 2026. Soil amendments suppress migratory pests and enhance yields. Scientific Reports 16:646. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-27884-z
- Cease, A.J., Talal, S., Osgood, G., Pulver, T., Millerwise, S., Overson, R.P., Harrison, J.F., 2025. Energetic constraints on multi-day flights in migratory locusts. Journal of Experimental Biology jeb.251191. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.251191
- Cease, A.J., Lecoq, M., Ries, M.W., Therville, C., 2025. Locusts as pests: Past, present, and future. In: Grasshoppers, Locusts, and Crickets of the World, edited by Martin Husemann and Oliver Hawlitschek. Princeton University Press.
- Lawton, D., Learned, J., Waters, C., Toole, I., Thompson, N., Hales, C., Adriaansen, C., Deveson, T., Simpson, S.J., Cease, A., 2025. Exploring nutrient availability and herbivorous insect population dynamics across multiple scales. Oikos e11189. https://doi.org/10.1111/oik.11189
- Lockett, R., De Sousa, M.F., Nicoluzakis, K.A., Cease, A., Sweazea, K.L., 2025. Urban substrates alter the nutritional composition of an emerging model insect, Tenebrio molitor. Journal of Insect Physiology 166:104892. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jinsphys.2025.104892
- Millerwise, S., Talal, S., Pulver, P., Goethe, E., Osgood, G., Cossey, E., Overson, R., Harrison, J., Cease, A., 2025. High-protein diets shorten female but not male life spans and have minimal effects on egg production in Migratory locusts. Ecological and Evolutionary Physiology. https://doi.org/10.1086/735836
- Touré, M., Fall, A., Burnham, A., Beye, A., Badiane, S.K., Lawton, D., Cease, A.J., 2025. Code for Soil Amendments Suppress Migratory Pests and Enhance Yields. https://doi.org/doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17547461
- Cease, A.J., 2024. How nutrients mediate the impacts of global change on locust outbreaks. Annual Review of Entomology 69:527–550. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-ento-120220-110415
- Ries, M.W., Adriaansen, C., Aldobai, S., Berry, K., Bal, A.B., Catenaccio, M.C., Cigliano, M.M., Cullen, D.A., Deveson, E.D., Diongue, A., Foquet, B., Hadrich, J., Hunter, D., Johnson, D.L., Karnatz, J.P., Lange, C.E., Lawton, D., Lazar, M., Latchininsky, A.V., Lecoq, M., Le Gall, M., Lockwood, J., Manneh, B., Overson, R., Peterson, B.F., Piou, C., Poot-Pech, M.A., Robinson, B.E., Rogers, S.M., Song, H., Springate, S., Therville, C., Trumper, E., Waters, C., Woller, D.A., Youngblood, J.P., Zhang, L., Cease, A.J., 2024. Global perspectives and transdisciplinary opportunities for locust and grasshopper pest management and research. Journal of Orthoptera Research 33:169–216. https://doi.org/10.3897/jor.33.112803
- Talal, S., Harrison, J.F., Farington, R., Youngblood, J.P., Medina, H.E., Overson, R., Cease, A.J., 2024. Body mass and growth rates predict protein intake across animals. eLife 13:e88933. https://doi.org/10.7554/elife.88933
- Talal, S., Chahal, A., Osgood, G.M., Brosemann, J., Harrison, J.F., Cease, A.J., 2024. Target for lipid-to-carbohydrate intake minimizes cost of growth. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 291:20240424. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2024.0424
- Brosemann, J., Overson, R., Cease, A.J., Millerwise, S., Le Gall, M., 2023. Nutrient supply and accessibility in plants: effect of protein and carbohydrates on Australian plague locust (Chortoicetes terminifera) preference and performance. Frontiers in Insect Science 3. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/finsc.2023.1110518
- Cease, A.J., Trumper, E.V., Medina, H., Bazán, F.C., Frana, J., Harrison, J., Joaquin, N., Learned, J., Roca, M., Rojas, J.E., Talal, S., Overson, R.P., 2023. Field bands of marching locust juveniles show carbohydrate, not protein, limitation. Current Research in Insect Science 100069. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cris.2023.100069
- Le Gall, M., Touré, M., Lecoq, M., Marescot, L., Cease, A., Maiga, I., 2023. Chapter 4 - Senegalese grasshopper—a major pest of the Sahel. In: Biological and Environmental Hazards, Risks, and Disasters (Second Edition), pp. 77-96. Elsevier, Boston. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-12-820509-9.00009-5
- Talal, S., Parmar, S., Osgood, G.M., Harrison, J.F., Cease, A.J., 2023. High carbohydrate consumption increases lipid storage and promotes migratory flight in locusts. Journal of Experimental Biology 226:1–6. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.245351
- Youngblood, J.P., Cease, A.J., Talal, S., Copa, F., Medina, H.E., Rojas, J.E., Trumper, E.V., Angilletta Jr, M.J., Harrison, J.F., 2023. Climate change expected to improve digestive rate and trigger range expansion in outbreaking locusts. Ecological Monographs 93:e1550. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecm.1550
- Zembrzuski, Z., Woller, D.A., Jaronski, S., Black, L.R., Chris Reuter, K., Grief, D., Beatty, A., Overson, R., Cease, A.J., 2023. Understanding how diet and temperature affect survival and subsequent sporulation in a major rangeland grasshopper pest, Melanoplus sanguinipes, infected with the entomopathogenic fungus, Metarhizium robertsii. Biological Control 183:1–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocontrol.2023.105268
- Lawton, D., Scarth, P., Deveson, E.D., Piou, C., Spessa, A., Waters, C., Cease, A.J., 2022. Seeing the locust in the swarm: accounting for spatiotemporal hierarchy improves ecological models of insect populations. Ecography 2022:1–14. https://doi.org/10.1111/ecog.05763
- Lecoq, M., Cease, A.J., 2022. Are Mycopesticides the Future of Locust Control? Agronomy 12:2344. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12102344
- Lecoq, M., Cease, A.J., 2022. What have we learned after millennia of locust invasions? Agronomy 12:1–10. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12020472
- Le Gall, M., Beye, A., Diallo, M., Cease, A.J., 2022. Generational variation in nutrient regulation for an outbreaking herbivore. Oikos 2022:1–15. https://doi.org/10.1111/oik.09096
- Trumper, E.V., Cease, A.J., Cigliano, M.M., Bazán, F.C., Lange, C.E., Medina, H.E., Overson, R.P., Therville, C., Pocco, M.E., Piou, C., Zagaglia, G., Hunter, D., 2022. A review of the biology, ecology, and management of the South American Locust, Schistocerca cancellata (Serville, 1838), and future prospects. Agronomy 12:1–20. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12010135
- Lawton, D., Le Gall, M., Waters, C., Cease, A.J., 2021. Mismatched diets: defining the nutritional landscape of grasshopper communities in a variable environment. Ecosphere 12:1–16. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3409
- Le Gall, M., Word, M.L., Beye, A., Cease, A.J., 2021. Physiological status is a stronger predictor of nutrient selection than ambient plant nutrient content for a wild herbivore. Current Research in Insect Science 1:100004. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cris.2020.100004
- Talal, S., Cease, A., Farington, R., Medina, H.E., Rojas, J., Harrison, J., 2021. High carbohydrate diet ingestion increases post-meal lipid synthesis and drives respiratory exchange ratios above 1. Journal of Experimental Biology 224:1–6. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.240010
- Therville, C., Anderies, J.M., Lecoq, M., Cease, A., 2021. Locusts and People: Integrating the Social Sciences in Sustainable Locust Management. Agronomy 11:951. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11050951
- Zembrzuski, Z., Woller, D.A., Jech, L., Black, L.R., Reuter, K.C., Overson, R., Cease, A., 2021. Establishing the nutritional landscape and macronutrient preferences of a major United States rangeland pest, Melanoplus sanguinipes, in field and lab populations. Journal of Orthoptera Research 30:163–172. https://doi.org/10.3897/jor.30.61605
- Lawton, D., Waters, C., Le Gall, M., Cease, A., 2020. Woody vegetation remnants within pastures influence locust distribution: Testing bottom-up and top-down control. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 296:1–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2020.106931
- Le Gall, M., Word, M.L., Thompson, N., Manneh, B., Beye, A., Cease, A.J., 2020. Linking land use and the nutritional ecology of herbivores: A case study with the Senegalese locust. Functional Ecology 34:167–181. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.13466
- Le Gall, M., Word, M.L., Thompson, N., Beye, A., Cease, A.J., 2020. Nitrogen fertilizer decreases survival and reproduction of female locusts by increasing plant protein to carbohydrate ratio. Journal of Animal Ecology 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.13288
- Talal, S., Cease, A.J., Youngblood, J.P., Farington, R., Trumper, E.V., Medina, H.E., Rojas, J.E., Fernando Copa, A., Harrison, J.F., 2020. Plant carbohydrate content limits performance and lipid accumulation of an outbreaking herbivore. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 287:2–9. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2020.2500
- Le Gall, M., Overson, R., Cease, A.J., 2019. A global review on locusts (Orthoptera: Acrididae) and their interactions with livestock grazing practices. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 7:1–24. https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2019.00263
- Robertson, R.M., Cease, A.J., Simpson, S.J., 2019. Anoxia tolerance of the adult Australian Plague Locust (Chortoicetes terminifera). Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part A: Molecular & Integrative Physiology 229:81–92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpa.2018.12.005
- Word, M.L., Hall, S.J., Robinson, B.E., Manneh, B., Beye, A., Cease, A.J., 2019. Soil-targeted interventions could alleviate locust and grasshopper pest pressure in West Africa. Science of The Total Environment 663:632–643. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.01.313
- Niu, D., Yuan, X., Cease, A.J., Wen, H., Zhang, C., Fu, H., Elser, J.J., 2018. The impact of nitrogen enrichment on grassland ecosystem stability depends on nitrogen addition level. Science of The Total Environment 618:1529–1538. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.09.318
- Cease, A.J., Harrison, J.F., Hao, S., Niren, D.C., Zhang, G., Kang, L., Elser, J.J., 2017. Nutritional imbalance suppresses migratory phenotypes of the Mongolian locust (Oedaleus asiaticus). Royal Society Open Science 4:1–11. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.161039
- Cullen, D.A., Cease, A.J., Latchininsky, A.V., Ayali, A., Berry, K., Buhl, J., De Keyser, R., Foquet, B., Hadrich, J.C., Matheson, T., Ott, S.R., Poot-Pech, M.A., Robinson, B.E., Smith, J.M., Song, H., Sword, G.A., Vanden Broeck, J., Verdonck, R., Verlinden, H., Rogers, S.M., 2017. From molecules to management: mechanisms and consequences of locust phase polyphenism. In: Advances in Insect Physiology, pp. 167-285. Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.aiip.2017.06.002
- Diaz, M.I., Harrison, J., Cease, A., 2017. Water Restrictions and Macronutrient Level Intake of Locust. In: The FASEB Journal, pp. 889.7.
- Medina, H., Cease, A., Trumper, E., 2017. The resurgence of the South American locust (Schistocerca cancellata). Metaleptea 37:17–21.
- Cease, A.J., Fay, M., Elser, J.J., Harrison, J.F., 2016. Dietary phosphate affects food selection, post-ingestive phosphorus fate, and performance of a polyphagous herbivore. The Journal of Experimental Biology 219:64–72. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.126847
- Cease, A.J., Capps, K.A., Gates, K.K., McCrackin, M.L., Nidzgorski, D.A., 2015. Consumer-driven nutrient dynamics in urban environments: the stoichiometry of human diets and waste management. Oikos 124:931–948. https://doi.org/10.1111/oik.02391
- Cease, A.J., Elser, J.J., Fenichel, E.P., Hadrich, J.C., Harrison, J.F., Robinson, B.E., 2015. Living with locusts: Connecting soil nitrogen, locust outbreaks, livelihoods, and livestock markets. BioScience 65:551–558. https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biv048
- Hao, S., Wang, S., Cease, A., Kang, L., 2015. Landscape level patterns of grasshopper communities in Inner Mongolia: interactive effects of livestock grazing and a precipitation gradient. Landscape Ecology 30:1657–1668. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10980-015-0247-8
- Zhang, Z., Elser, J.J., Cease, A.J., Zhang, X., Yu, Q., Han, X., Zhang, G., 2014. Grasshoppers regulate N:P stoichiometric homeostasis by changing phosphorus contents in their frass. PLoS ONE 9:e103697. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0103697
- Cease, A.J., 2013. Linking rangeland management with the nutritional physiology and ecology of locusts. Proceedings of the 22nd International Grassland Congress 4.
- Dayger, C.A., Cease, A.J., Lutterschmidt, D.I., 2013. Responses to capture stress and exogenous corticosterone vary with body condition in female red-sided garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis). Hormones and Behavior 64:748–754. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yhbeh.2013.09.003
- Harrison, J.F., Cease, A.J., VandenBrooks, J.M., Albert, T., Davidowitz, G., 2013. Caterpillars selected for large body size and short development time are more susceptible to oxygen-related stress. Ecology and Evolution 3:1305–1316. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.551
- Harrison, J.F., Waters, J.S., Cease, A.J., VandenBrooks, J.M., Callier, V., Klok, C.J., Shaffer, K., Socha, J.J., 2013. How locusts breathe. Physiology 28:18–27. https://doi.org/10.1152/physiol.00043.2012
- Zhao, D., Zhang, Z., Cease, A., Harrison, J., Kang, L., 2013. Efficient utilization of aerobic metabolism helps Tibetan locusts conquer hypoxia. BMC Genomics 14:631.
- Cease, A.J., Elser, J.J., Ford, C.F., Hao, S., Kang, L., Harrison, J.F., 2012. Heavy livestock grazing promotes locust outbreaks by lowering plant nitrogen content. Science 335:467–469. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1214433
- Cease, A., 2012. Locust Outbreaks and Migration in the Asian Steppe: The Influence of Land Management Practices and Host Plant Nutrient Status. Arizona State University.
- Cease, A.J., Hao, S., Kang, L., Elser, J.J., Harrison, J.F., 2010. Are color or high rearing density related to migratory polyphenism in the band-winged grasshopper, Oedaleus asiaticus? Journal of Insect Physiology 56:926–936. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jinsphys.2010.05.020
- Cease, A.J., Lutterschmidt, D.I., Mason, R.T., 2007. Corticosterone and the transition from courtship behavior to dispersal in male red-sided garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis). General and Comparative Endocrinology 150:124–131. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ygcen.2006.07.022
