​Scientific discovery through
integrative research

We study proximate and ultimate factors influencing the dynamic interplay between pollinators and the flowering plants that they service.  Our current research projects address such questions as:  What is the functional significance of floral display complexity? Why do foraging preferences vary among pollinator species? What are the causes and consequences of global pollinator decline? How effective are different restoration and conservation strategies for native pollination systems?  To address these questions, we use highly integrative experimental approaches that combine concepts and methodologies from fields such as animal behavior, human psychology, molecular biology, community ecology, and computational biology. 

As a model system, we primarily use bumblebees (Bombus spp.) because they have evolved the cognitive capacity to flexibly track food resources (nectar and pollen) in complex multi-sensory floral environments; they have rich co-evolutionary relationships with many native flowering plant species; they are highly amenable to experimental study of behavior under laboratory and field conditions; they play a critical role in maintaining ecosystem health and biodiversity; and they are easily identified to the species level under natural conditions by citizen scientists. ​
Picture
The bumblebee Bombus vagans foraging for floral resources
Interested in joining the lab? 
​Please email me for information on graduate student positions.

FROM BRAINS TO BIODIVERSITY
Our laboratory  combines different research methods and levels of organization to gain a comprehensive understanding of plant-pollinator relationships.

​​IN THE LAB

Controlled behavioral experiments provide insight into brain processes mediating pollinator foraging decisions.

IN THE FIELD

Field studies provide insight into structure and dynamics of pollinator-based  natural networks.

IN BETWEEN

Experimental manipulations under semi-natural conditions provide insight into co-evolved pollinator and plant traits.

IN SILICO

Virtual pollination systems provide insight into long-term effects of human-introduced stressors on biodiversity.