​Scientific Advisors

At the heart of Project Apis m. is research; seeking science-driven solutions to honey bee health and crop pollination problems. To choose the best projects, we rely on a team of scientists with a wide variety of experience and expertise to review the proposals we receive. We seek projects that will ultimately improve honey bee health.  Our main areas of focus include:  1) pests and disease prevention and control, 2) honey bee nutrition, 3) impacts of pesticides on bees, and 4) long-term honey bee stock improvement.  Reviewers ask questions that ensure the commercial beekeeping community will benefit from the research and its application. Read more about applying for funding. 

Dr. Eric Mussen
Dr. Mussen, now retired, was the Extension Apiculturist for UC-Davis for 34 years. He has organized and delivered various extension programs to beekeepers and others interested in honey bees and crop pollination, and published a widely read bimonthly newsletter. He is a member of the American Association of Professional Apiculturalists, Entomological Society of America, Northern California Entomological Society, California State Beekeepers’ Association, Western Apicultural Society, American Beekeeping Federation and the American Honey Producers’ Association. His newsletter, “From the U.C. Apiaries,” can be accessed here.

Dr. Michelle Flenniken
Michelle is an Assistant Professor in the Plant Sciences Department at Montana State University, where she investigates honey bee host-pathogen interactions. She is also Co-Director of Montana State University's Pollinator Health Center and the recent recipient of a prestigious NSF CAREER award.

Dr. Michael Simone-Finstrom
Michael is a Research Molecular Biologist who works for USDA-ARS. His research has focused on individual and social mechanisms of disease resistance, including resin/propolis use, hygienic behavior and genetic diversity.

Dr. Reed Johnson
​Reed is an Associate Professor at the Department of Entomology, The Ohio State University. Dr. Johnson conducts research in honey bee toxicology, pharmacology and looks to answer questions of honey bee foraging. Dr. Johnson and his colleagues are seeking to understand how to protect pollinators from the pesticides and toxins they encounter.

Dr. Mike Goblirsch
Mike Goblirsch is a Research Entomologist with the USDA Agricultural Research Service.  His research focuses on understanding the role of pathogens and other stressors in honey bee health.  He is particularly interested in pathogen-mediated effects to bee cell health. He has developed the first continuous honey bee cell line that serves as a tool, along with individual and colony-level studies, to understanding intracellular microbes that have a negative impact on honey bees

Dr. Brandon Hopkins
Brandon is an Assistant Research Professor at Washington State University in the Department of Entomology.  Initially working on the development of cryopreservation of honey bee germplasm for breeding and conservation, work that enabled the establishment of the world’s first honey bee germplasm repository at WSU and inclusion of honey bee semen in the USDA National Animal Germplasm Program. More recently, research efforts have expanded to include developing practical solutions for the beekeeping industry ranging from bee breeding to varroa control.

Dr. Marta Guarna
Marta is a Research Scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and an Adjunct Professor at the University of British Columbia. Marta is originally from Argentina and obtained a Ph.D. from New York University before moving to Canada, where she has also worked in the biomedical field.  She has authored 30+ scientific and outreach publications, and is a member of the American Association of Professional Apiculturists, the Entomology Society of America, the BeeHIVE Research Cluster, COLOSS, and the BeeBiome Consortium. She also serves as chairperson of the Canadian Association of Professional Apiculturists’ Research Committee, and the Canadian Bee Research Fund. Her collaborative research combines field and high-throughput laboratory techniques to study queen health, bee pathogens, and pollination.