Pollinator ResearchMichael Smith
2016 The Garden Club of America Board of Associates Centennial Pollinator Fellowship
Michael L. Smith is a PhD candidate at Cornell University studying honeybee colony development. His research will test two hypotheses of how worker bees assess colony size-comb vibration and chemical compounds. His study will determine how these clues change with colony size and then manipulate the clues to test whether and how the bees use them. This study aims to identify the metrics the bees use to determine their own colony development. Understanding how bees detect their own colony’s development will enable beekeepers to become better stewards of this premier pollinator.
The Garden Club of America Board of Associates Centennial Pollinator Fellowship
To provide funding to study the causes of pollinator decline, in particular bees, bats, butterflies, and moths, which could lead to potential solutions for their conservation and sustainability.
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