Rachel Mallinger

Dr. Rachel Mallinger is a pollinator ecologist focusing primarily on native wild bees. She is interested in the basic biology of native wild bees, their response to anthropogenic disturbance, and their role in the pollination of both crop and wild plants. A major focus of her research program is to integrate approaches from landscape ecology and community ecology to better understand pollinator community dynamics and plant-pollinator interactions at multiple spatial scales. She conducts research in a variety of ecosystems, including natural, agricultural and urban, with the overarching goal of informing pollinator conservation and improving pollination services.

Dr. Mallinger’s lab conducts research in three general areas, 1. Enhancing our understanding of basic bee biology including bee behavior, life history, and ecology, 2. Investigating the effects of disturbance and conservation on pollinator abundance and diversity, and 3. Examining interactions between bees and the plants that they pollinate.

Dr. Mallinger’s extension program focuses on identifying management strategies that can support pollinators across different habitat types, and improve the pollination of pollinator-dependent crops. Her lab disseminates general information about pollinators, research results, and management recommendations to extension faculty, growers and other agricultural professionals, home gardeners, and landscape designers.