Lab PI - Assistant Professor of Pollinator Ecology, Department of Entomology

Email: mchristman@agcenter.lsu.edu

Mo's (she/her) passion for ecology and conservation began as an undergraduate at Denison University. She started her career as an pollinator ecologist during her Ph.D. at Utah State University, and continued her training as a postdoctoral scholar at The Ohio State University and a USDA-NIFA-AFRI postdoctoral fellow at the USDA-ARS Pollinating Insect–Biology, Management, Systematics Research Unit. 

Mo is actively engaged in science advocacy and deeply committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in science through mentorship and public engagement. In the wild, Mo can be found hiking with her dog, boxing, and baking.

If you are interested in joining the North American Pollinator Protection Campaign Imperiled Bombus Task Force, please email Mo or co-chairs Tam Smith, tamara_smith@fws.gov and Lora Morandin, lm@pollinator.org.

Email: sbarclay@agcenter.lsu.edu

Sylvia (she/her) earned her undergraduate degree in 2025 with a B.A. in Biology and a minor in Environmental Studies at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon. She has always had a curiosity for the natural world and outside of her studies, she began beekeeping through a college club and helped establish a native pollinator garden on campus. These experiences, along with her passion for environmental sustainability and conservation, led her to pursue a Master’s in Entomology in the Christman Lab at LSU.  

Her research focuses on native bee ecology by investigating bumble bee population genetics and floral associations to inform conservation strategies. Her thesis explores the genetic diversity of the imperiled Bombus pensylvanicus (American bumble bee) through contemporary field collections in Louisiana as well as through museum specimens spanning the species’ broader native range. She also seeks to understand the phenology, plant-pollinator interactions, relative abundance, and community composition of Bombus species in southeastern Louisiana while working to produce a guide to the bumble bee species of this region. When she’s not catching bees, she enjoys running, listening to music, hiking, and gardening. 

Sarah (she/her) is an undergraduate student in Natural Resource Ecology and Management with a concentration in Conservation Biology at LSU. She enjoys learning the identification and taxonomy of bees and moths. When not in the lab, she just be knitting, crocheting, hiking, and reading. 

Kyle (he/him) is an undergraduate student in Electrical Engineering with a concentration in Power at LSU that generally loves to learn. He focuses on topics such as robotics, controls, applied electronics, and now iterative rapid prototyping. If he's not in school, he's probably tinkering with some new gadget he found or in a robotics lab working with big robots or haptic control devices.

Grant (he/him) is an undergraduate student in Chemical Engineering at LSU. Driven by a desire to look closer at the world around him, he loves discovering the beauty of nature and is excited to keep learning about entomology as a newcomer to the field. When he’s not in school, he enjoys playing and listening to music, diving into video games, and heading out on new adventures.

William (he/him) is a junior at Denham Springs High School. Driven by his love for nature, he hopes to pursue a degree in biology. When he's not in school, he enjoys fishing, insect collecting, and tending to his garden.