University of Pretoria – South Africa
I am appointed as an extra ordinary lecturer in the Department of Zoology and Entomology in the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at the university of Pretoria. With my research, I aim to increase our understanding of factors that may contribute to the loss of honeybee colonies in South Africa. More specifically, I investigate the effect of nutrition, pathogens and parasites which, when interlinked, adversely affect both honeybee health and plant-pollinator interactions. More recently, my research also covered the effect of neonicotinoid pesticides on honeybee physiology, behaviour and nutrition
My work for United Exports (blueberries) and SAMAC (South African macadamia industry) contributes to our knowledge in the field of crop pollination, pollinator identification and pollination efficiency, the quality of floral rewards (nectar and pollen) and quality control of colonies in pollination.
I have co-supervised one PhD, two master’s and six honours students. Her publications include 30 peer-reviewed articles, 25 popular articles and book chapters. At the local level she is involved with various key role players and stakeholders in the beekeeping industry in South Africa, including the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Agricultural Research Council, the South African Bee Industry Organisation and beekeepers.
I am is a member of the COLOSS international honeybee research network that focus on the monitoring and prevention of colony losses and the global conservation and management of pollinator ecosystem services.
I received a C2 rating from the NRF.