Neal Williams – PI
Pollination biology, bee ecology evolution and behavior, agroecology
CV,
Email
Postdoctoral Researchers
Jeremy Hemberger
Bumble bees, agroecology, foraging behavior, colony development, global change
Website,
Email
I am a bumble bee ecologist interested in how anthropogenic changes to the landscape and environment (e.g., agriculture and climate change) impact bumble bee behavior, colony growth and reproduction, and populations and communities. My PhD research sought to develop an understanding of how common species such as the common eastern bumble bee (Bombus impatiens) cope with variable floral abundance brought about by agroecosystem management (e.g., mass-flowering crops), while also exploring the diverging population patterns of Midwestern bumble bee species in response to agricultural intensification using historical databases of agricultural statistics and bumble bee records. Overall, the goal of my work is to improve our understanding of the factors that allow some bumble bee species to succeed while others struggle in hopes to develop more robust conservation strategies for bumble bees.
Vivian Wauters
Developing best management practices for cover crop systems in Almond
Email
I am broadly interested in agroecosystem diversification and how research can work in tandem with other forms of knowledge and expertise to build capacity for enhanced multifunctionality in agricultural systems. Prior research has focused on the intersection of cover crops and soil health. Currently, I am working with growers, researchers, advisers and non-profits to develop a set of best management practices for integrating cover crops into almond orchards.
Clara Stuligross
Bee ecology, agroecology, environmental stressors, pesticides, nutrition
Email
I am interested in the direct and interactive effects of environmental stressors on native bees. For my PhD, I studied nutrition and pesticide exposure and their comparative effects on Osmia lignaria and Bombus vosnesenskii fitness, behavior, and population persistence.
Graduate Students
Nick Rosenberger
Pollination biology, global change, community ecology, plant mating systems
Email
I am interested in plant-pollinator interactions in the context of floral reproduction. Primarily, I am interested in how drivers of global change (e.g. climate change and species invasion) alter phenological timing of plant-pollinator interactions and whether this matters in the context of plant mating system/life history strategies. For my MSc work I studied how the introduced bumble bee Bombus terrestris displaces the native Patagonian bumble bee Bombus dahlbomii’s interaction with Fuchsia magellanica through nectar robbing, and how such nectar robbing alters plant female reproductive success throughout the entire reproduction process.
Elizabeth Reyes-Gallegos
Landscape ecology, pollinator conservation, sustainable agriculture
Email
I am interested in integrating tools and perspectives of landscape ecology to promote pollinator diversity in the context of agricultural sustainability. This will involve a more holistic multifunctional understanding of pest and pollinator populations, communities and management in working landscapes.
Abigail Lehner
Urban landscape ecology, pollinator conservation, mason bees, climate change
Email
I am interested in how urbanization affects native bee species. Specifically, I am curious how pollutants and urban heat waves lead to changes in mason bee nesting behaviors. My previous work has been primarily focused on bee community ecology. I determined how bee diversity and community composition changed over time at Pinnacles National Park. Additionally, I monitored and compared bee communities in native and restored habitats at the Albany Pine Bush Preserve.
Sylvie Finn
Bee ecology, bumble bees, phenology, life history evolution, conservation
Email
I am broadly interested in how organisms time their life cycle events in the context of changing environments. I am particularly interested in investigating these questions in bumble bees, as many elements of the bumble bee life cycle remain a mystery. My current research focuses on exploring the variation in timing of colony activity, reproduction, and dormancy in the yellow faced bumble bee (Bombus vosnesenskii) across its range. Ultimately, I hope to use natural history and ecological research to inform conservation. Prior to coming to UC Davis, I began my graduate work with Elizabeth Crone at Tufts University and I am now co-advised in the Crone and Williams labs.
Undergraduate Researchers
Sarah Caso (Environmental Science, UC Berkeley 2023)
Email
Sonia Wu (Biology, UC Davis 2025)
Email
Past Members
Lab Manager
Kimiora Ward, Plant Ecology Program Manager, NPS Yosemite
Postdoctoral Scholars
Claire Brittain, http://clairebrittain.wordpress.com/
Jessica Forrest, Associate Professor, University of Ottawa
Jochen Frund, Researcher/Lecturer, University of Freiburg
Sandra Gillespie, Assistant Professor, University of the Fraser Valley
Ola Lundin, Researcher, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala
Rosemary Malfi, Pollinator Network Coordinator, Northeast Organic Farming Association of Massachusetts
Maj Rundlof, Researcher, Lund University
Tina Harrison, Postdoctoral Scholar, University of Louisiana
Charlie Nicholson, Postdoctoral Scholar, Lund University
Uta Müller, Postdoctoral Scholar, University of Minnesota
Graduate Students
Clara Stuligross, (PhD) 2022, Postdoctoral Scholar, UC Davis
Maureen Page, (PhD) 2022, Postdoctoral Scholar, Cornell University. Maureen’s website
Ross Brennan, (PhD) 2022, Director, UC Davis Quail Ridge Reserve
John Mola, (PhD) 2019, Assistant Professor, Colorado State University. John’s website
Jennifer VanWyk, (PhD) 2018, Visiting Lecturer, Mount Holyoke College
Leslie Saul-Gershenz, (PhD) 2017, Postdoctoral Scholar, UC Davis
Rei Scampavia, (PhD) 2017, Consulting in the San Francisco Bay Area. Rei’s website
Katharina Ullmann, (PhD) 2014, Director of UC Davis Student Farm
Ryder Diaz, (MS) 2012
Felix Klaus, (Fulbright Scholar) 2014, Current PhD student in Teja Tschartnke’s group at Georg-August-University Göttingen
Arvid Lindh, (MS supervised through Lund University) 2017, Current PhD student at Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Visiting Researchers
Valerie Fournier, Université Laval, Canada
Annie Ouin, Université de Toulouse, France
Youhong Peng, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Aleksandra Splitt, National Institute of Horticultural Research, Poland
Junior Specialists and Lab Assistants
Grace Milburn, Lab Technician, Danforth Plant Science Center
Kitty Bolte, Xerces Society Pollinator Habitat Specialist
Kate Borchardt, pursuing PhD at Iowa State University
Anna Britzman, US Forest Service Botany Technician
Andrew Buderi, pursuing PhD at University of Louisiana Lafayette
Staci Cibotti, pursuing PhD at Penn State University
Mike Epperly, US Forest Service Consulting Utility Forester
Colin Fagan, Sacramento Tree Foundation
Nate Pope, Postdoctoral Scholar, Department of Entomology at Penn State University
Logan Rowe, Conservation Associate, Michigan Natural Features Inventory
Heather Spaulding, Field Safety Professional, UC Davis Environmental Health & Safety
Undergraduates
Serra Perry (2021)
Li Wang (2021) Imperial College, UK
Gigi Melone (2020) University of Wisconsin
Anna Britzmann (2019) USFS Oregon
Kate Borchardt (2018) Iowa State University
Beth Beyer (2017) CDFW
Jessica Drost (2017)
Sonja Glasser (2015) UMass Amherst
Mira Parekh (2013)
Alexi Haack (2013)
Sarah Bolm (2012)
Emily McGlynn (Bryn Mawr College 2009) – Native bee benefits for agriculture in the Mid-Atlantic
Kristen Jenkins (Bryn Mawr College 2009) – Functional Compensation and biodiversity loss
Sarah Allard (Haverford College 2009) – Functional Compensation and biodiversity loss
Cecily Moyer (Haverford College 2009) – The role of floral morphology and reward in structuring pollinator plant networks
Rosemary Malfi (Bryn Mawr College 2007) – The effect of urban development on Bombus communities in the Delaware Valley, PA
Daniela Miteva (Bryn Mawr College 2007) – Pollinator communities and pollination in eastern old fields, Pollinator and pollen deposition webs in restored meadows
Amanda Rahi (Bryn Mawr College 2007) – The contributions of specialist and generalist bees to reproductive success of desert mallow