Jonathan Koch

I am a Ph.D. student at Utah State University (USU) where I collaborate with the USDA-Agricultural Research Service Pollinating Insect Research Unit in Logan, UT. I am broadly interested in conservation biology and population genetics, specializing on bee pollinators. During my Master’s program, I applied species distribution modeling techniques and geographic information systems to over 50 000 natural history and contemporary specimen records to estimate bumble bee decline in the United States. I am currently investigating patterns in bumble bee genetic diversity in the intermountain west. I am an outspoken advocate for citizen science, serving as a coordinator for the USU Insect Tours, which attracts over a thousand preK-12 students each year from Utah and Idaho.