We’re delighted to support a new PhD project led by Dr. Vivek Nityananda at Newcastle University to figure this out.

It’s recruiting now. Apply by Feb 27th!

About the Project

This BBSRC NEEDL Partnership Project is based at Newcastle University.

Understanding the effects of stress on pollinators is an urgent and important issue. Animal welfare has developed a range of techniques to look at stress in vertebrates, which are increasingly being used in invertebrates. This project will apply techniques from animal welfare and neurobiology to investigate how stress impacts pollinator welfare.

We will investigate how natural stressors like pesticides, heat or predators affect the cognitive behaviours of bumblebees. We will look at both the immediate effects of these stressors as well as the effects over time. We will also look at how the duration and frequency of the stress changes bee cognition. We will then determine the neural mechanisms underlying the responses to stress by imaging bee brains and looking at what chemicals might be important for these responses.

Training and collaboration

The project will be led by a team of experts with complementary expertise in behavioural analysis, AI, neuroscience and welfare. Cross-disciplinary training will be provided across fields including animal behaviour, molecular biology, optical imaging, immunohistochemistry, animal welfare, data analysis, neuroethology, insect vision and programming skills.

This project is a joint initiative between Newcastle and Durham Universities, and Sensibee, a company that specializes in automated pollinator monitoring. The student will be based in the Biosciences Institute at Newcastle University and will spend time in the second supervisor’s laboratory at Durham and a placement with Sensibee.

The student will be integrated into vibrant and active research labs and encouraged to develop their research skills in a friendly and supportive environment. They will also be given opportunities to participate in meetings, seminars and conferences. In addition, the student will have a placement at another institution or company of their choice for 3 months. This will give them an opportunity to explore their professional interests and build professional networks.

Who should apply?

This project will suit a student with strong skills in experimental design and animal behaviour and with interests in molecular biology and neuroscience. Experience working with insects, especially bees, is beneficial but not required. Informal enquiries are very welcome. Any interested applicants are strongly encouraged to contact Dr Vivek Nityananda.

Information on Sensibee can be found at sensibee.io.

Funding

NEEDL CASE Studentships enable students to undertake research projects that involve both an academic and non-academic partner and are fully funded by the UKRI BBSRC for 4 years, including a minimum of 3 months working with an industry partner.

Funding for home (UK) students will cover a tax-free stipend at the UKRI rate (indicative amount in year 1 in 2026-27: £21,383), research costs and tuition fees. NEEDL studentships are available to Home (UK) candidates. In addition, a small number of awards will be available to support outstanding International applicants. The proportion of international students appointed will be limited up to 30% of the total.

Further information regarding the NEEDL PhD Programme is available at needl.org.uk.

Studentships commence: 1st October 2026

References

  1. Motivational trade-offs as evidence for sentience in bees: a critique. Animal Behaviour, (in press) (2025).
  2. Physically stressed bees expect less reward in an active choice judgement bias test. Proceedings B, 291(2032), 20240512, (2024).
  3. Different effects of reward value and saliency during bumblebee visual search for multiple rewarding targets. Anim Cogn 24, 803–814 (2021).
  4. Modality-specific attention in foraging bumblebees. R. Soc. Open Sci. 2150324150324 (2015).
  5. Organization of olfactory centers in the malaria mosquito Anopheles gambiae. (2016) Nature Communications, 7, 13010.

Best wishes,
The Sensibee team 🐝