Autumn Smart is a plant-pollinator data specialist. She leads the work from Xerces to integrate plant-pollinator datasets into a national database effort from NRCS's national plant data team, with the goal of making plant-pollinator information easily accessible through the PLANTS Database. She also works with central region staff on data analysis and visualization needs.
Autumn brings a depth of experience with managing, visualizing, and analyzing data. She has conducted research on managed and wild pollinators and plant communities, with a focus on the Great Plains, for 15 years. She received a M.S. in entomology at Washington State University with Dr. Steve Sheppard in 2010 and PhD in entomology at the University of Minnesota working with Dr. Marla Spivak in 2015. Her previous research with the USGS (as a wildlife biologist) and University of Nebraska-Lincoln (as an ecosystem ecologist) examined various aspects of pollinator health, including the interactive effects of diseases, parasites, land use conditions, nutrition, weather, and other biotic and abiotic stressors on the abundance, richness, health, survival, and productivity of bees.