Rate My Professor Lewis Bartlett

Lewis Bartlett is an Assistant Professor with a joint appointment in the Department of Entomology, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, and the Odum School of Ecology at the University of Georgia. In Biology, he holds a B.A. (Hons) in Natural Sciences specializing in Zoology from the University of Cambridge (2013) and a Ph.D. in Biosciences from the University of Exeter (2019), where his thesis examined the evolutionary ecology of infectious diseases and intersections with apiculture under supervisors Prof. Mike Boots and Dr. Lena Wilfert. His career at UGA began as a Postdoctoral Associate in the Center for the Ecology of Infectious Diseases (2019–2022), mentored by Prof. Keith Delaplane, Prof. John Drake, and Dr. Richard Hall, followed by Assistant Research Scientist (2022–2023), before transitioning to his current faculty role in 2023. Earlier positions include Postdoctoral Researcher in the Department of Biology at Emory University (2018–2019) reporting to Prof. Jaap de Roode, and Visiting Scholar in the Department of Integrative Biology at U.C. Berkeley (2016–2018).

Bartlett's research focuses on sustainability science, evolutionary ecology, infectious disease ecology, and pollinator biology, particularly honey bee (Apis mellifera) health amid threats from parasites like Varroa destructor mites, viruses, and pesticides such as neonicotinoids. He develops and evaluates apicultural management strategies to enhance colony resilience. Key publications include “Robustness despite uncertainty: regional climate data reveal the dominant role of humans in explaining global extinctions of Late Quaternary megafauna” (Ecography, 2016), “Industrial bees: the impact of apicultural intensification on local disease prevalence” (Journal of Applied Ecology, 2019), “Persistent effects of management history on honeybee colony virus abundances” (Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, 2021), “Frontiers in effective control of problem parasites in beekeeping” (International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife, 2022), and “Neonicotinoid exposure increases Varroa parasitism severity in honey bee colonies” (Journal of Insect Science, 2024). His scholarship has garnered over 700 citations. Since joining UGA, he has secured approximately $1.6 million in funding as PI or co-PI from sources including USDA-NIFA and Project Apis m. Awards encompass the Entomological Society of America Science Policy Fellowship (2023–2025), University of Georgia CEID Postdoctoral Fellowship ($200K, 2019–2022), and honorary memberships from the Palm Beach and Eastern Piedmont Beekeepers’ Associations. Bartlett serves as Specialist Subject Editor for Insect Health & Pathology at Frontiers in Insect Science and holds a U.S. provisional patent (63/333,877, 2022) for reducing parasitic infestation in honey bee hives.