Self-funded MSc R- Causes and consequences of balanced nutrition in bees

Introduction:

Bees play crucial roles as pollinators of wild and agricultural plants, contributing significantly to various ecosystems and global food security. However, their health and well-being are under threat due to various factors, including habitat loss, pesticide exposure, and poor nutrition. This PhD project aims to unravel the intricate relationships between bee nutrition, foraging behaviour, and colony fitness to develop strategies for enhancing bee health in human-modified environments.

Project Objectives:

The project comprises four interconnected aims:

1. Study Behavioural Mechanisms that help Bees Increase Nutritional Diversity

Bees could follow different strategies to achieve a diverse diet, for instance, they could show a preference for rare pollen types over common ones, possibly using odour cues. One gap in our understanding is whether bees that are responsible for brood rearing, i.e. nurse bees, follow strategies to mix pollen types. Foragers bees are also likely to play a critical role in achieving a diverse diet. Do they modify their foraging behaviour in response to a mono-floral or a mixed-floral pollen supply?

2. Explore the Balance between Nutritional Diversity and Energy Efficiency in Bee Foraging

Bees need to collect different types of nutrients, while also making sure that resources are collected efficiently. The candidate will investigate how bees balance their need for diverse nutrients vs. the need for an efficient energy collection.

3. Test the Impact of Nutritionally Diverse Forage on Bee Fitness

The candidate will conduct experiments to assess whether providing bees with access to a nutritionally diverse range of forage options leads to improvements in their health and reproduction. This involves measuring colony growth, reproduction rates, and the resilience to stressors under varying foraging conditions.

4. Investigate the Influence of Food Source Arrangement on Nutritional Diversity and Fitness

The candidate will analyse how different food source arrangements, such as a few large patches vs many smaller ones, affect the diversity of collected pollen types. This experiment can be done using bumble bees or solitary bees.

MSc by Research 

MSc by Research (MSc R) is a 1-year research degree that provides an intensive lab-based training and a preparation for PhD study. You will carry out your studies as part of your research group – like a PhD student does. Towards the end of the year, you write up a thesis on your research and are examined on this. This degree suits students wanting to gain maximum research experience in preparation for PhD applications. 

We are keen to recruit a diverse range of students and to ensure our research is open to all. We particularly welcome applications from groups traditionally under-represented in life sciences research. Please check the University webpages for the current tuition fee information. Most MSc R projects also require a bench fee. This varies depending on the research and your project supervisor can tell you the bench fee for the project. 

How to apply 

Before applying, please read carefully the information on the prospectus Biological Sciences | Study at Bristol | University of Bristol and make sure you have all the documents listed in the Entry Requirements – Admissions Statement and English Language Requirements.  

To apply, follow the link Start your application | Study at Bristol | University of Bristol and select the programme "Biological Sciences (PhD)”.

If you have questions about the project, please contact Dr Christoph Grueter at c.grueter@bristol.ac.uk

Dr Christoph Grueter - Our People (bristol.ac.uk)

If you require assistance with your application, please email fls-pgenquiries@bristol.ac.uk