Biography:Pat Willmer
Patricia 'Pat' Gillian Willmer is an entomologist and ecologist in the UK. She is emeritus professor of zoology at the University of St Andrews and is an expert in pollination[1].
Pat Willmer | |
|---|---|
| Alma mater | University of Cambridge |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | University of St Andrews |
Career and research
Willmer was initially a neurobiologist at the University of Cambridge, before moving into invertebrate physiology and eventually insect plant interactions[2].
She has researched pollination biology for over 30 years[3] and she supports agricultural environmental schemes such as wildflower strips to support pollinating insects and enhance crop pollination[4].
Some of her interesting findings include flowers can change colour such as the legume Desmodium setigerum which changes from lilac to white to turqoise after being visited by a pollinating bee[5]; and acacia plants that manipulate the ants that defend them, releasing a compound mimicking the ant alarm pheromone when they flower so that pollinating insects such as bees can visit[6].
Willmer has written several books on her subject:
- Bees, ants and wasps: a key to genera of the British Aculeates, published by the Field Studies Council in 1985[7].
- Invertebrate Relationships: Patterns in Animal Evolution, published by Cambridge University Press in 1990[8].
- Environmental Physiology of Animals, with Graham Stone and Ian Johnston, published by Wiley Blackwell in 2000[2].
- Pollination and Floral Ecology, published by Princeton University Press in 2011[9].
References
- ↑ "Patricia Gillian Willmer - University of St Andrews". https://risweb.st-andrews.ac.uk/portal/en/persons/patricia-gillian-willmer(ba10d07d-75ef-4096-97dc-130c1866c0b2).html.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Environmental Physiology of Animals, 2nd Edition | Wiley" (in en-gb). https://www.wiley.com/en-gb/Environmental+Physiology+of+Animals%2C+2nd+Edition-p-9781405107242.
- ↑ "Willmer Group" (in en-US). https://synergy.st-andrews.ac.uk/apig/people/.
- ↑ France-Presse, Agence (2015-06-17). "Bees are worth billions to farmers across the globe, study suggests" (in en-GB). The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jun/17/bees-are-worth-billions-to-farmers-across-the-globe-study-suggests.
- ↑ "Flowers change colour and back again to advertise their opening hours" (in en). 2009-06-15. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/phenomena/2009/06/15/flowers-change-colour-and-back-again-to-advertise-their-opening-hours/.
- ↑ "When Allies Are Too Zealous". https://www.discovermagazine.com/environment/when-allies-are-too-zealous.
- ↑ Willmer, Pat (1985). Bees, ants and wasps: the British Aculeates. Field Studies Council. ISBN 978-0916422585.
- ↑ "Invertebrate relationships patterns animal evolution | Entomology" (in en). https://www.cambridge.org/gb/academic/subjects/life-sciences/entomology/invertebrate-relationships-patterns-animal-evolution,%20https://www.cambridge.org/gb/academic/subjects/life-sciences/entomology.
- ↑ (in en) Pollination and Floral Ecology. 2011-07-25. ISBN 978-0-691-12861-0. https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691128610/pollination-and-floral-ecology.
External links
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