People

Our lab investigates how interactions among bees, plants, pathogens, and changing environments shape pollinator behaviour, health, and evolution. Our research spans laboratory, field, and agricultural systems, addressing questions that range from the evolution of animal societies to the effects of climate change on pollination and pollinator resilience.

Principle Investigator

Shelley Hoover

My research focuses on understanding how bees and other social animals interact with each other and their environment, from pollination ecology and bee health to host–parasite interactions and the evolution of animal societies. When I’m not thinking about bees, I’m usually climbing rocks, spending time with my family, or relaxing at home with my cats.

Postdocs

Leslie Holmes

My research program characterises invertebrate life histories to identify insect traits that can be leveraged to address key challenges. My current research focuses on using the honey bee gut microbiome to monitor bee health and inform management practices. Specifically, my research focuses on how the environment and exposure to stressors impacts queen health, fertility, and vitality, and how queen life histories scale to impact colony performance and productivity.

Fairo Dzekashu

I am a pollination ecologist from Cameroon, passionate about understanding how plants and pollinators work together to sustain both natural ecosystems and agriculture. My research has spanned the University of Buea, icipe, and the University of Pretoria, exploring pollinator diversity and plant–pollinator interactions across African mountain ecosystems. My current research examines how climate change affects crop pollination to develop support sustainable agriculture, food security, and pollinator conservation.

Courtney MacInnis

Graduate Students

Jemma Todoschuk

I am a PhD candidate in the Hoover lab whose interests lie in host-parasite interactions. My research investigates the effects of a microsporidian gut parasite, Vairimorpha (formerly known as Nosema), on worker bee foraging behaviours and their winter physiology. Because I’ve enjoyed working in this lab and with the bees so much, I plan to pursue a career in the apiculture industry.

Kathryn Knowles

I am a second-year MSc student in the Hoover lab. I study the factors that influence queen acceptance and retention in honey bee colonies. My research examines how changes in brood and population dynamics affect worker responses to queen pheromones and colony organization. I also investigate the nutrition of queens and their attendant workers to identify ways to improve transportation conditions for imported queens. I completed my undergraduate degree at the University of Guelph, where I first developed an interest in honey bee research.

Technicians

Jessenia Buzunis-Delagneau

I was an undergrad student in the lab, and since graduating, I have been assisting with honey bee research projects. My work focuses primarily on bumble bees. In collaboration with the McCune lab, my Honours Thesis project assessed whether honey and bumble bees compete for floral resources and documented the floral resources that increase bumble bee presence in Lethbridge. I also wrote a guide to Lethbridge bumble bees! https://hdl.handle.net/10133/7114. I will be off Ottawa to pursue a MSc in the autumn.

Lynae Ovinge

My research interests focus on applied research with the goal of giving beekeepers actionable choices grounded in strong evidence and practical field experience.

One of the most rewarding parts of my time in the lab has been mentoring undergraduate and graduate students and supporting newer researchers as they develop their own ideas and confidence.

Jeff Kearns

Undergraduates

Abigail Pollio

I am an undergraduate researcher in the lab and a student in the Biological Sciences Research Internship Concentration. In addition to contributing to several ongoing research projects, I am conducting an independent research study investigating the relationship between worker reproduction and worker retinue behaviour in honey bees.

Nathalia Moralez Ortiz

I am a Biology student at Universidad del Valle in Cali, Colombia, with a strong passion for insects. My favourite group is Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies), and I have previously worked on taxonomy and species richness studies involving this group. I’m currently completing a 12-week research internship in the Hoover Lab during the summer of 2026 through the Mitacs Globalink Research Internship program.