Rob Snyder’s interest in and passion for biological diversity lead him to study the processes of speciation, which is nature’s means for progress. He is an ecologist and evolutionary biologist using molecular approaches to find patterns in populations. These patterns, in turn, open new questions in animal behavior. His research in speciation looks at both the genetic diversity and the behavior diversity of insects, particularly treehoppers (Membracidae). Vibrational mating songs provide a mechanism to explain how divergent populations may split into new species, thus creating diversity.