Madalin Parepa

I am a plant ecologist, and I study the ecological and evolutionary processes that are the causes and the consequences of biological invasions. I like to use experiments to explore plant-plant interactions and interactions between plants and other trophic levels to better understand ecological communities. Currently, I am interested in how novel climate conditions, especially increased variability, can influence such interactions and whether this dimension of change is an important driver of biological invasions.

• Evolution of plant defenses during a plant invasion (DFG-NSFC)
• Genomics and epigenomics of plant invasion (DAAD/BMBF)
• Exotic plant invasion under increased environmental variability (DFG)
• Effects of microbiome, host and pathogen genotype, and environment on the interaction between Pseudomonas isolates and plants (DFG SPP 2125)
• Ecology of the core microbiome in natural Lotus corniculatus populations (DFG SPP 2125)
• How do endophytic fungi affect growth, environmental tolerance and competitive strength of invasive knotweeds? (DFG)
• Invasion ecology of exotic knotweeds
• WhoIsNext – Climate change and escaping ornamentals (BiodivERsA)
• Global Garlic Mustard Field Survey (GGMFS)

Liao ZY, Bossdorf O, Bucharova A, Karasch-Wittmann C, Parepa M (preprint) Nutrient variability increases dominance of two invasive plants in the field. Authorea, doi.org/10.22541/au.176242748.80565703/v1 

Irimia RE, Parepa M, Sebesta N, Barni E, Giaccone E, Guo Y, Karrenberg S, Richards CL, Bossdorf O (2025) Phenotypic plasticity of invasive knotweed across Europe: a distributed common garden experiment. Journal of Ecology 114: e70393

Karrenberg S, Barni E, Bossdorf O, Danko H, Giaccone E, Parepa M, Richards CL, Sebesta N, Irimia RE (2026) Failure to invest below-ground may limit the Northern expansion of invasive knotweed: lessons from a two-phase transplant experiment.  Journal of Evolutionary Biology, in press

Richards CL, Ervens B, Parmesan C, Amato P, Andrade C, Asatryan G, Balaji V, Ballantyne A, Barbier M, Blanc S, Bossdorf O, Bouchard F, Boucharel J, Cantrell C, Capron E, Carbonne C, Carrier M, Ceratti D, Choi H, Christoforodis K, Clark J, Cojocaru L, da Costa J, Derry L, Dewar W, Dubo T, Espinoza JC, Fedorov A, Forte A, Giambastiani G, Giannini A, Goldthau A, González-García A, Guemas V, Hamelin L, Hill E, Hoveyda A, Hughes-Allan L, Jatav S, Javourez U, Kaplan J, Keppetipola N, Kiko R, Lauvaux T, Lazarus D, Lee CE, Lguensat R, Lucas-Picher P, Mallick M, Melnikova I, Monnain G, Özen V, Palomo I, Parepa M, Possner A, Renard D, Ridde V, Rivada-Wheelaghan O, Rodrigues de Faria G, Sanderson B, Scheer C, Schulz P, Strutz S, Subramanian R, Tanaka K, Teixidó N, Tesche M, Thomas H, Todorovic S, Tsai Y, Turnheim B, Uchida T, Vadez V, Valla P, van Riemsdijk I, Villard L, Vincent E, Wang C, Wu H, Zuerch M (2026) Multidisciplinary science funding is more than ever a planetary priority: reflections from the Make Our Planet Great Again (MOPGA) program. PLoS Climate 5: e0000849

Burns B, Ainouche ML, Barni E, Bi J, Blossey B, Cao P, Cavé-Radet A, Endriss SB, Giaccone E, Grünert U, Guo Y, Irimia RE, Ju RT, Karrenberg S, Keefer K, Lee K, Liao ZY, Parepa M, Salmon A, Schmid MW, Sebesta N, van Riemsdijk I, Wang SY, Wu J, Yuan W, Zhang L, Zhao W, Zhao Y, Zhuang X, Li B, Bossdorf O, Richards CL (2025) The ecological genomic processes of the iconic Japanese knotweed invasion. In: Bock D, Ruis (eds.) Invasion Genomics, pp. 118-143. CAB International

Cao P, Wang S, Zhang L, Parepa M, Lin T, Bi J, Zhao Y, Endriss SB, Guo Y, Bossdorf O, Richards CL, Wu J, Ju RT, Liao Z, Li B (2025) Cross-continental variation of herbivore resistance in a global plant invader. Ecography 2025: e07569

Irimia RE, Zhao W, Cao P, Parepa M, Liao Z, Wang S, Mounger JM, Richardson C, Elkott F, Zhuang X, Bi J, Zhao Y, Kugler E, Rafalski J, Schloter E, Wu J, Ju RT, Yang J, Li B, Bossdorf O, Richards CL (2025) Cross-continental shifts of ecological strategy in a global plant invader. Global Ecology & Biogeography 34: e70001

Rieger MR, Grueneberg C, Oberhaus M, Trautmann S, Parepa M, Anthes A (2025) Bird population trend analyses for a monitoring scheme with a highly structured sampling design. Peer Community Journal 5: e45

Wang SY, Liao ZY, Cao P, Schmid MW, Zhang L, Bi J, Endriss SB, Zhao Y, Parepa M, Hu W, Akamine H, Wu J, Ju RT, Bossdorf O, Richards CL, Li B (2025) General purpose genotypes and evolution of higher plasticity in clonality underlie knotweed invasion. New Phytologist 246: 758-768

Cao PP, Yin WD, Bi JW, Lin TT, Wang SY, Zhou H, Liao ZY, Zhang L, Parepa M, Ju RT, Ding JQ, Nie M, Bossdorf O, Richards CL, Wu JH, Li B (2024) Clonal plasticity and trait stability may facilitate knotweed invasion in Europe. Journal of Plant Ecology 17: rtae067

Zhang L, van Riemsdijk I, Liu M, Liao ZY, Cavé-Radet A, Bi J, Wang S, Zhao YJ, Cao P, Parepa M, Bossdorf O, Salmon A, Ainouche M, Ju RT, Wu J, Richards CL, Li B (2024) Biogeography of a global plant invader: from the evolutionary history to future distributions. Global Change Biology 30: e17622

Zhao YJ, Wang S, Liao ZY, Parepa M, Zhang L, Cao P, Bi J, Guo YL, Bossdorf O, Richards CL, Wu J, Li B, Ju RT (2024) Geographic variation in leaf traits and palatability of a native plant invader during domestic expansion. Ecology 105: e4425

Guo Y, Parepa M, Wang H, Wang M, Wu J, Li B, Ju RT, Bossdorf O (2024) Global heterogeneity of latitudinal patterns in herbivory between native and exotic plants. bioRxiv, doi.org/10.1101/2024.01.24.576872

Bi J, Bossdorf O, Liao Z, Richards CL, Parepa M, Zhao W, Berninger F, Zhao YJ, Liu Z, Feng X, Ju RT, Li B, Wu J (2024) Divergent geographic variation in above- versus belowground secondary metabolites of Reynoutria japonica. Journal of Ecology 112: 514-527

Latzel V, Fischer M, Groot M, Gutzat R, Lampei C, Ouborg J, Parepa M, Schmid KJ, Vergeer P, Zhang YY, Bossdorf O (2023) Parental environmental effects are common and strong, but unpredictable, in Arabidopsis thaliana. New Phytologist 237: 1014-1023

Garnica S, Liao ZY, Hamard S, Waller F, Parepa M, Bossdorf O (2022) Environmental stress determines the colonization and impact of an endophytic fungus on invasive knotweed. Biological Invasions 24: 1785-1795

Mounger J, Ainouche M, Bossdorf O, Cave-Radet A, Li B, Parepa M, Salmon A, Yang J, Richards C (2021) Epigenetics and the success of invasive plants. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B 376: 20200117

Gáspár B, Bossdorf O, Parepa M (2020) Intraspecific variation in land use-related functional traits in Plantago lanceolata. bioRxiv, doi.org/10.1101/2020.02.28.967521

Parepa M, Kahmen A, Werner RA, Fischer M, Bossdorf O (2019) Invasive knotweed has greater nitrogen-use efficiency than native plants: evidence from a 15N pulse-chasing experiment. Oecologia 191: 389-396

Klonner G, Wessely J, Gattringer A, Moser D, Dullinger I, Hülber K, Rumpf S, Block S, Bossdorf O, Carboni M, Conti L, Dawson W, Haeuser E, Hermy M, Munkemuller T, Parepa M, Thuiller W, Van der Veken S, Verheyen K, van Kleunen M, Essl F, Dullinger S (2019) Effects of climate change and horticultural use on the spread of naturalized alien garden plants in Europe. Ecography 42: 1548-1557

Conti L, Block S, Parepa M, Münkemüller T, Thuiller W, Acosta A, van Kleunen M, Dullinger S, Essl F, Dullinger I, Moser D, Klonner G, Bossdorf O, Carboni M (2018) Functional trait differences and trait plasticity mediate biotic resistance to potential plant invaders. Journal of Ecology 106: 1607-1620

Haeuser E, Dawson W, Thuiller W, Dullinger S, Block S, Bossdorf O, Carboni M, Conti L, Dullinger I, Essl F, Klonner G, Moser D, Münkemüller T, Parepa M, Talluto MV, Kreft H, Pergl J, Pyšek P, Weigelt P, Winter M, Hermy M, Van der Veken S, Roquet C, van Kleunen M (2018) European ornamental garden flora as an invasion debt under climate change. Journal of Applied Ecology 55: 2386-2395

van Kleunen M, Essl F, Pergl J, Brundu G, Carboni M, Dullinger S, Early R, Gonzalez-Moreno P, Groom QJ, Hulme PE, Kueffer C, Kühn I, Máguas C, Maurel N, Novoa A, Parepa M, Pyšek P, Seebens H,Tanner R, Touza J, Verbrugge L, Weber E, Dawson W, Kreft H, Weigelt P, Winter M, Klonner G, Talluto MV and Dehnen-Schmutz K (2018) The changing role of ornamental horticulture in alien plant invasions. Biological Reviews 93: 1421-1437

Zhang YY, Parepa M, Fischer M, Bossdorf O (2017) Epigenetics of colonizing species? A study on Japanese knotweed in Central Europe. In: Barrett SCH, Colautti RI, Dlugosch KM, Rieseberg LH (eds.) Invasion Genetics: The Baker and Stebbins Legacy, pp. 328-340. Wiley, Chichester

Parepa M, Bossdorf O (2016) Testing for allelopathy in invasive plants: it all depends on the substrate! Biological Invasions 18: 2975-2982

Bucharova A, Frenzel M, Mody K, Parepa M, Durka W, Bossdorf O (2016): Plant ecotype affects interacting organisms across multiple trophic levels. Basic and Applied Ecology 17: 688-695

Parepa M, Fischer M, Krebs C, Bossdorf O (2014) Hybridisation increases invasive knotweed success, Evolutionary Applications 7: 413-420

Parepa M, Fischer M, Bossdorf O (2013) Environmental variability promotes plant invasion. Nature Communications 4:1604

Parepa M, Schaffner U, Bossdorf O (2013) Help from under ground: soil biota facilitate knotweed invasion. Ecosphere 4: 31

Parepa M, Schaffner U, Bossdorf O (2012) Sources and modes of action of invasive knotweed allelopathy: the effects of leaf litter and trained soil on the germination and growth of native plants. Neobiota 13: 15-30

Murrell C, Gerber E, Krebs C, Parepa M, Schaffner U, Bossdorf O (2011) Invasive knotweed affects native plants through allelopathy. American Journal of Botany 98: 38-43

Bossdorf O, Parepa M, Fischer M (2010) Climate-neutral ecology conferences: just do it! Trends in Ecology & Evolution 25: 61