Connecticut State The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station

Gale E. Ridge

Gale E. Ridge

Dr. Gale Ridge, seated at a grand piano in a reception hall.

Department of Entomology

The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station

123 Huntington Street

New Haven, CT 06511

Voice: (203) 974-8478 | Fax: (203) 974-8502

E-mail: Gale.Ridge@ct.gov

Expertise:

Dr. Ridge is an expert on bed bugs, especially those in the Cimicidae family. Most of her research focuses on bed bugs and how they live and behave. She also studies insect anatomy, behavior, and ecology. In addition, Dr. Ridge works as a scientific illustrator who specializes in pen‑and‑ink drawings. Dr. Ridge oversees the daily work of the insect inquiry office, which gets thousands of questions from the public each year.  Most of her current research is with Delusional Infestation, an unshakeable belief of being infested by parasites.

 

 

Education:

Ph.D. The University of Connecticut (Ecology and Evolution) 2008

M.S. Southern Connecticut State University (Biology Department) 1998

B.A. Hons. Trinity College of Music (Piano performance and teaching) 1980

Station career:

Associate Agricultural Scientist 8/07/2019

Assistant Agricultural Scientist 2  4/25/2008

Assistant Agricultural Scientist 1  2/02/2007

Agricultural Research Technician 1  8/10/2001

Agricultural Research Assistant 3  5/22/1998

 

Service activities and responsibilities:

The insect inquiry office in the Department of Entomology helps people across Connecticut identify insects and deal with insect problems. Many groups rely on this office, including health departments, hospitals, medical workers, housing authorities, real estate professionals, pest control companies, nurseries, arborists, landscapers, homeowners, schools, colleges, orchards, and Christmas tree farms.

The office also serves as a first responder by checking for new or unusual insect species. It has discovered several exotic insects, some of which have become new state or even national records. The office provides outreach by creating fact sheets, writing articles, and giving workshops, lectures, and presentations at conferences and meetings at all levels.

Dr. Ridge has played a major role in helping housing groups, health departments, and pest control professionals learn how to manage the common bed bug (Cimex lectularius) in Connecticut. She serves as the chair of the Connecticut Coalition Against Bed Bugs (CCABB). This group includes experts from pest control companies, state and local health departments, researchers, the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, and the Connecticut Chief State’s Attorney’s Office.

CCABB advises state lawmakers, hosts bed bug training events, runs a website, publishes informational articles, manages a 400‑member email list, and has even created an award‑winning bed bug video.

Dr. Ridge is also a member of the EPA’s Scientific Advisory Panel under FIFRA. In addition, she is the curator of the insect collection at The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station and identifies exotic insects that enter the state, including Agrilus planipennis, Sirex noctilio, Anoplophora glabripennis, Operophtera brumata, and Tomicus piniperda, among others.

 

Some Discoveries by Dr. Ridge:

  • 2025 Mediterranean Recluse Spider, Loxosceles rufescens, new Connecticut State record
  • 2024 Aproceros leucopoda Takcuchi (Argidae), new Connecticut State record
  • 2022 Heterobostrychus aequalis (Bostrichidae), interception in Connecticut
  • 2022 Brevipalpus yothersi Baker (Prostigmata), new Connecticut State record
  • 2017 Charagochilus longicornis (Miridae): new North American record
  • 2017 Lyctus africanus, new Connecticut State record
  • 2017 Deinerella sp. (Latridiidae), new Connecticut State record
  • 2017 Trogoderma simplex, new Connecticut State record
  • 2017 Ophiderma trincta Ball (Membracidae), new Connecticut State record
  • 2015 Dendronctonus frontalis, new Connecticut state record
  • 2013 Cockroach predation against Cimex lectularius L.
  • 2013 Unique survival strategies and distribution behavior of Cimex lectularius L.
  • 2013 Cimex lectularius L. species complex
  • 2013 Dinoderus minutus, new Connecticut state record
  • 2012 Male reproductive behavior with Cimex lectularius L.
  • 2009 Crytotermes brevi, new Connecticut state record; Bostrychoplites cornutus, interception; Aleurodicus disperses, interception; Anomis commode, first Connecticut state record; Eupteryx decemnotata, new Connecticut state record; Hylastes opacus, new Connecticut state record
  • 2008 Halyomorpha halys Stål., new Connecticut state record; Cepaea nemoralis (L). new Connecticut state record
  • 2007 Myrmica rubra L., new Connecticut State record (nursery shipment)
  • 2007 Trionymus americanus (Cockerell), new Connecticut State record
  • 2006 Trogoderma granarium Everts., new Connecticut State record
  • 2005 Thanasimus formicarius Polski., new Connecticut State record
  • 2000 Exotic Bostrychidae spp. in furniture shipped from Egypt
  • 1998 Callidiellum rufipenne (Motschulsky), new United States record

 

 

Research:

  • Delusional Infestation
  • Research in efficacy of an entomopathogenic fungus on bed bug mortality.
  • Research on entomopathogenic natural compounds for management of bed bugs.
  • Bed bug reproduction and behavior.
  • Taxonomy and systematics of a species complex for Cimex lectularius L. Long term research project with international collaborators.
  • Viability tests of Symbiotes lectularius in Cimex lectularius L.
  • Cockroach predation of Cimex lectularius L.
  • Bed bug resistant furniture. 

 

Papers

  • Cheng C., G. E. Ridge. 2021. Improving care for delusional infestation patients: What can dermatologists learn from an entomologist? Derm. Online J. 27 (11); 1-6.
  • Stafford, K. C., G. E. Ridge, G. Molaei, C. Zarb, P. Bevilacqua. 2020. Rabbit Bot Fly Furuncular, Tracheopulmonary, and Human Bot Fly Infestation in Connecticut (Oestridae: Cuterebrinae). J. Med. Ent. 20 (10): 1-7.
  • Keyes, T., G. E. Ridge, M. Klein, N. Phillips, R. Ackley, Y. Tang. 2020. An enhance procedure for urban mobile methane leak detection. Heliyon 6: 304876.
  • Ridge, G. E., W. Elmer, W. Gaines, X. Li, D. Schlatzer, K. McClure-Brinton, J. M. Sheele. 2019. Xenointoxication of a Rabbit for the Control of the Common Bed Bug Cimex lectularius L. Using Ivermectin. Scientifica Vol. 2019, Article ID 4793569.
  • Soghigian, J., G. E. Ridge, K. Stafford III, G. Molaei. 2017. The First Evidence of Nanism in Ixodes (Ixodes) scapularis (Acari: Ixodidae), Found Parasitizing a Human Host. J. Med. Ent. 0 (0): 1-5.
  • Lefkowitz, R. Y., G. E. Ridge. 2016. Paederus dermatitis in a seafarer diagnosis via telemedicine collaboration. J. Trav. Med. 1-3. Doi: 10.1093/jtm/taw017.
  • Sheele, J. M., G. E. Ridge, T. S. McCormick, K. Coppolino, A.B. Young, S. L. Gaines, T. Bonfield. 2017. Antibody and cytokine levels in humans fed on by the common bed bug Cimex lectularius L. J. Para. Imm. Vol. 0 No. 0. 1-5.
  • Sheele, J. M., G. E. Ridge. 2016. Toxicity and potential utility of ivermectin and moxidectin as xenointoxicants against the common bed bug, Cimex lectularius L. Para. Res. 115: 3071. doi:10.1007/s00436-016-5062-x.
  • Stafford III, K., G. E. Ridge. 2012. Insect Identification and Inquiries in Connecticut. A state Perspective on the Evolution and Future of an Entomological Service. Am. Ent. 58 (2): 78-89.
  • Ridge, G. E. 1998. Distribution of the western conifer seed bug Leptoglossus occidentalis Heidemann (Heteroptera: Coreidae) in Connecticut and parasitism by a tachinid fly Trichopoda pennipes (F) (Diptera: Tachinidae). Pro. Ent. Soc. Wash. 103 (2): 364-366.
  • Fly management handbook. Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station. Bulletin 1013. May 2008. Contributing author and illustrator.

     

Publications:

  • The Physician's Guide to Delusional Infestation.  Springer Nature. Editor Dr. Ridge. Published April 9, 2024.
  • Insect identification and inquiries in Connecticut.  A state Perspective on the Evolution and Future of an Entomological Service. American Entomologist.
  • Identification Guide to the Mosquitoes of Connecticut. Illustrator. Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station. Bulletin 966.
  • Distribution of the western conifer seed bug Leptoglossus occidentalis Heidemann (Heteroptera: Coreidae) in Connecticut and parasitism by a tachinid fly Trichopoda pennipes (F) (Diptera: Tachinidae). Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington: Vol. 103, No. 2, pp. 364-366
  • Fly management handbook.  Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station. Bulletin 1013. Contributing author and illustrator
  • Best Practices for Bed Bug Management of Mattresses, Bedding, and Upholstered Furniture. Guidance Document for the Reuse/Resale and Recycling Industries in Connecticut

Fact Sheets: Fact sheets by Dr. Ridge are available at the Insect Information Office's Fact Sheet Page.