We have custom-built lab facilities to study individuals, cohorts and colonies of free-flying bees. Our nutrition lab is equipped for diet development and our climate chambers allow us to replicate in-hive conditions for feeding experiments. We use these facilities to study how bees regulate their intake of nutrients. In our taste lab, we study pre-ingestive detection of nutrients and other compounds including naturally occurring phyto-toxins and synthetic pesticides, using electrophysiology for tip recording from gustatory sensilla. Using free-flying arenas, we explore how floral resources influence bee foraging behaviour. We are also equipped with real-time PCR facilities, so our work can scale from genes to behaviour.
