THOMAS DAVID

BIOGRAPHY

Thomas is researching how plant-pollinator interactions are affected by soil nutrition. He is interested in how soil nutrition affects intra-specific variation of key floral traits, such as phenology and nectar chemistry, and consequently the impact on pollinating insects. To address his research objectives, Thomas is working on the Park Grass long-term experiment, one of Rothamsted Research’s classic experiments that began in 1856. The field work will be complemented with harmonic radar studies and controlled laboratory experiments to determine the effects of soil nutrition on the foraging choices and physiological development of pollinating insects. During his research, Thomas will use field and laboratory skills, such as botanical and entomological taxonomic identification, pollinator field surveys, collecting nectar and pollen from inflorescences, growing plants and rearing bees for controlled laboratory experiments, using harmonic radar, and HPLC analysis of nectar and pollen for sugars and amino acids.