Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics
IBED Research Groups
Evolutionary Biology (EB)
The research group studies the evolutionary genetic mechanisms of population differentiation and reproductive isolation in the course of evolution. We concentrate on traits and mechanisms involved in the development of reproductive isolation, as well as on analyzing and modeling the resulting population genetic structure and phylogeographic patterns.
Experimental Plant Systematics (EPS)
The group Experimental Plant Systematics studies the origin and maintenance of genetic variation in plants, its relationship with the plant's breeding system, and its role in the process of adaptation. Self-incompatibility is studied in Arabidopsis and Rorippa species. Adaptation to abiotic stress factors (e.g. flooding) is studied in different Rorippa species and their hybrids. Applied research concerns the conservation of endangered plant species in fragmented landscapes, and the consequences of introgression of crop (trans)genes after escape to wild relatives.
Computational Geo-Ecology (CGE)
Our scientific mission is to contribute to the understanding of processes and patterns in terrestrial geo-ecosystems. It is our aim to understand, from an abiotic perspective, how earth surface processes work and interact in a dynamic landscape. We analyse the evolution of landscape ecosystems over various temporal and spatial scales, while taking special interest in scale-dependencies and hierarchical relationships. We observe, explain, quantify and model the fluxes and transformation processes operating in the landscape, as well as the response of landscape-forming processes to external forces such as climatic, tectonic, biotic and human influences.
Earth Surface Science (ESS)
Our scientific mission is to improve our understanding of geo-ecological systems in a changing environment. The domain of Earth Surface Sciences is formed by the interface of soil, air and water in the landscape. It encompasses the complex interrelationships between biogeochemical and geomorphological processes in terrestrial and adjacent aquatic ecosystems, and the effects thereon of Climate Change and direct human impact. A major challenge inherent to these processes is that they are of a biotic as well as an abiotic nature, and have large spatial and temporal heterogeneity. As a result, the core business of our Research Group is characterized by investigations of a vast array of complex interactions at scales ranging from the molecular to the landscape level. The challenges posed by such investigations can only be met by multidisciplinary approaches, innovative experiments and application of modern analytical tools.
Paleo Ecology and Landscape Ecology (P&L)
Our scientific mission is to contribute to the understanding of climate change in the past (orbital forcing, solar forcing, human impact) by studying its impact on the biotic (vegetation) and abiotic (sediment transport) segments of the landscape on time scales from decades to the complete Quaternary. In multi-proxy studies analysis of fossil pollen, non-pollen palynomorphs, and plant macrofossils in sediment cores and peat monoliths are central. We study short term natural vegetation succession, impact of man on its environment (historical landscape ecology), and long term development of ecosystems (biomes) when evolutionary and geological processes are involved. Studies of patterns in plant distributions and diversity of Amazonian and Andean vegetation serve conservation and restoration, and calibration of fossil pollen records.
Aquatic Ecology and Ecotoxicology (AEE)
The group of Aquatic Ecology and Ecotoxicology aspires to be an international center of excellence in biological research at the sediment water interface. The overarching goal is to understand the biocomplexity, arising from the multitude of biological, physical and chemical processes that sustain and modify benthic life formed by compact consortia of specialized micro-algae, bacteria and (burrowing) invertebrates.
Aquatic Microbiology (AMB)
Aquatic Microbiology studies the ecology of micro-organisms in aquatic environments. Aquatic micro-organisms include viruses, bacteria, phytoplankton, fungi, and zooplankton. Research spans a wide variety of disciplines, ranging from the molecular biology and physiology towards the population dynamics and ecosystem ecology of aquatic micro-organisms.
Population Biology (PB)
Population Biology is the branch of ecological science that studies the processes determining persistence or extinction of populations, species and communities of species. The aim is to explain changes in population size and distribution from the properties of individuals that together represent the population. These properties include development, growth, survival, reproduction, dispersal, foraging and other behaviour, as well as their genetic determination and phenotypic plasticity.
Theoretical Ecology (TE)
The main body of theory concerning population dynamics and community structure is based on the analysis of unstructured, Lotka-Volterra type population dynamic models. These models basically only account for reproductive processes and mortality, either from predation or from other causes. A major process that is not considered by these approaches is the fact that most if not all individual organisms develop during their life history and often grow significantly in body size during this development. These ontogenetic changes result in individuals playing a different ecological role in the different stages of their life history. Through analysis of size-structured models we have revealed how such changes during life history may affect the dynamics and structure of the ecological community.