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 Thomas O'Shea-Wheller

Thomas O'Shea-Wheller

Research Fellow

 Environment and Sustainability Institute 

 

Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK

Overview

I am interested in the complex interactions that govern collective behaviour, ecology, and self-organisation within social insects. My research centres upon the intersection between fundamental investigations of colony functioning, and applied work in ecology and epidemiology. I utilise ants, honey bees, bumble bees, and termites as models to assess network dynamics, with a focus on the role of interindividual heterogeneity.

Currently, I am involved in projects pertaining to honey bee epidemiology and genetics, the dynamics of parasite-pathogen interactions within insect colonies, the effect of mosquito control compounds upon bumble bees, and the detection and behavioural classification of invasive hornets using artificial intelligence.

The central aim of my research is to leverage an understanding of the rules underpinning complex systems; both to solve real-world challenges, and enhance mechanistic knowledge at a variety of scales. I value social insect models, as they provide tractable and fascinating tools with which to investigate applied and fundamental questions in biology.

Orchid ID: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5537-2659

Google Scholar: http://scholar.google.com/citations?user=3pPvPfIAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao

Qualifications

2017 PhD (University of Bristol) Biology

2013 BSc (University of Exeter) Biosciences

Career

2021-Present Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Exeter

2018-2021 Postdoctoral Researcher-Project Manager, Louisiana State University

Links

Research group links

Research

Research interests

  1. Pollinator health and epidemiology
  2. Collective behaviour in social insects
  3. Vespa velutina as an invasive species
  4. Behavioural heterogeneity
  5. AI-assisted tracking and detection

Current research

Research projects

2022-2023 IDSAI: AI Usage in Invasive Species Detection and Impact Assessment

2022-2023 BDI: The Role of Treatment Adherence in Honey Bee Health

2021-2022 AMCARF: Evaluating the Impacts of Mosquito Control on Bumble Bees

2018-2022 USDA NIFA: A Longitudinal Study of the Principle Factors Leading to Colony Losses in Migratory Beekeeping

2018-2019 LSU AgCenter: Quorum-Sensing by Encounter Rate in Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Swarms

Research grants

  • 2022 Bee Diseases Insurance
    The role of treatment adherence in honey bee health.
  • 2022 Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (IDSAI)
    This project aims to develop and evaluate an AI-assisted automated detection system for the invasive hornet Vespa velutina.
  • 2021 American Mosquito Control Association
    Evaluating the Impacts of Mosquito Control on Bumble Bees
  • 2018 Louisiana State University
    Quorum-Sensing by Encounter Rate in Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Swarms

Publications

Key publications | Publications by category | Publications by year

Publications by category


Journal articles

O'Shea-Wheller TA, Rinkevich FD, Danka RG, Simone-Finstrom M, Tokarz PG, Healy KB (2022). A derived honey bee stock confers resistance to Varroa destructor and associated viral transmission. Sci Rep, 12(1). Abstract.  Author URL.
Laycock I, Cotterell KC, O'Shea-Wheller TA, Cresswell JE (2014). Effects of the neonicotinoid pesticide thiamethoxam at field-realistic levels on microcolonies of Bombus terrestris worker bumble bees. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 100(1), 153-158. Abstract.

Publications by year


2022

O'Shea-Wheller TA, Rinkevich FD, Danka RG, Simone-Finstrom M, Tokarz PG, Healy KB (2022). A derived honey bee stock confers resistance to Varroa destructor and associated viral transmission. Sci Rep, 12(1). Abstract.  Author URL.

2014

Laycock I, Cotterell KC, O'Shea-Wheller TA, Cresswell JE (2014). Effects of the neonicotinoid pesticide thiamethoxam at field-realistic levels on microcolonies of Bombus terrestris worker bumble bees. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 100(1), 153-158. Abstract.

Thomas_OShea-Wheller Details from cache as at 2023-03-21 18:19:46

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Teaching

I teach courses relating to collective behaviour, ecology and evolution, and pollinator biology. Additionally, I mentor students in project selection and orchestration.

Supervision / Group

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