Insect pollinator nutritional & behavioral ecology
Did you know there are 20,000 species of bees in the world? And that 4,000 of those species are native to North America? In celebration of World Bee Day, Tufts Pollinator Initiative (TPI) highlights some of the bees TPI members have studied across the United States and in Costa Rica! Read about TEN species of […]
Over the weekend, you may have seen charged headlines about the “murder hornet.” In response, I received many panicked messages asking whether the Asian giant hornet is a cause for concern. Check out my recent Tufts Pollinator Initiative (TPI) blog post to learn about why this hornet could be a problem for managed honey bees, […]
I am excited to announce that the Tufts Pollinator Initiative (TPI) has reached its goal of making Tufts University Medford-Somerville a certified Xerces Society Bee Campus USA! To learn more about the Bee Campus USA program and how TPI will continue to spread the pollinator love, check out my most recent TPI blog post!
Unfortunately, my Washington fieldwork has been delayed for the time being. In the meantime, you can learn about Pacific Northwest bees I saw last year (as well as other pollinators) by checking out this free online version of 2 Million Blossoms! Many thanks to Kirsten, the editor, for making this available. If you enjoy this […]
This January, most members of the Tufts Pollinator Initiative (TPI) traveled to Costa Rica as part of Tufts University’s Tropical Ecology and Conservation course. In this course, students spend the fall semester preparing a proposal and planning a research project for the tropics. Over winter break, the students visit the tropics to carry out their […]
This month’s Tufts Pollinator Initiative blog post, written by yours truly, lists gift ideas for the pollinator enthusiasts in your life! Check out the gift ideas here. Happy holidays from me and the rest of the Tufts Pollinator Initiative!
As a kid, I thought that all scientists dressed in a white coat and goggles, ready to mix chemicals and use fancy equipment in a lab. I didn’t realize that in playing outdoors, catching insects, and asking questions, I was doing science. Now as a field biologist, I am constantly inspired by the natural curiosity […]
Last month I had the opportunity to run a workshop on protecting native bees for 250+ kids at Camp Micah in Bridgton, ME. Like humans, bees need three things: food, shelter, and water. In my workshop, the campers focused on shelter—we built 200 bee “hotels” to donate to the Honeybee Conservancy for their Sponsor-A-Hive program. […]
For the last few years, I have had the honor of working with staff at the Discovery Museum in Acton, MA to develop and present my “All About Bees” program. Museum visitors get to taste honey, observe insects under a microscope, and make their own beeswax candles. To read more about last year’s program and […]
“If you ask questions, make predictions, and search for answers, you are a scientist. ‘Science’ isn’t a person in a lab coat using fancy equipment and mixing chemicals, it’s a process that can be done in a lab, in a classroom, at home, out in the field.” For the past couple years, I have been […]
Providence Pollinator Lab 