EVEREST students

Interests

I am mainly interested in studying anatomy from a functional and evolutionary perspective. Several cutting-edge techniques are available today and represent a powerful tool to investigate the relationship between our modern anatomical structures, the environment and our evolutionary history. This may help us to clarify why different anatomical features can be observed in the hominin group and why these changes occurred. Are these the result of functional adaptations?
I have previously studied the biomechanics of the mandible in modern humans and great apes using virtual modelling techniques and biomechanical simulations (e.g., FEA). In the context of my PhD project, I will employ a multidisciplinary approach to explore the evolutionary interplay between tool-use/making and gestural/verbal communication with the goal to provide new insight into the mechanisms underlying the cognitive bases of human tool-use and language. 

Methods

- Brain and muscle activity will be analysed using EEG and EMG techniques to identify patterns of brain-hand coordination during paleolithic tool use/making tasks and non-verbal communication experiments.

- Biomechanical analyses and simulations will be employed to investigate manipulatory abilities in tool use/making.

- Multivariate statistics will be used to analyse data.

Interests

Urbanization, Ecology, Landscape, Land use, Green space, Green roofs, Urban Gardening, Habitat, Biodiversity, Extinction, Deforestation, Climate change, SDGs, GIS

Methods

Observational approach using GIS & multivariate Analysis

Interests

My research interests are in plant ecology, particularly how vegetation structure, function and diversity are changing under global climatic changes and immense anthropogenic pressure.

My PhD under the umbrella project NamTip (https://www.namtip.uni-bonn.de/; https://uni-tuebingen.de/en/faculties/faculty-of-science/departments/biology/institutes/evolutionecology/eve-groups/plant-ecology/research/namtip/) focuses on understanding degradation and desertification tipping point dynamics using drone-based high resolution multispectral imagery.

Methods

My PhD work will be centered around using near surface remote sensing (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (drone)) accompanied by ground measurements in a dry land system to assess degradation and understand tipping point dynamics using the space-for-time approach.

Multispectral imagery will be acquired with a drone along grazing gradients (between 1.5 - 3 km long) using a RedEdge MX sensor mounted on a DJI Matrice 200 v2 drone; and an adapted line-point intercept technique will be used to collect land/ vegetation cover data based on the following categories: woody, perennial herbaceous plant, annual plant, organic matter and bare ground, together with their height measurements in established plots along the gradients as well as biomass harvesting. These data will be collected three times during the growing season (early, peak and end) to assess primary productivity trends.

Interests

I am interested in the connectivity and survivability of fragmented populations in the agriculturally used open landscape. For better understanding of these aspects, I want to establish a Meadow Pipit population as a model population for the island biogeography on the mainland. Furthermore, I want to understand the causes for the observed decline of this model population to give suggestions for appropriate habitat management measures.

Methods

I conduct a population ecological study with colour ringing and nest searching within the model population. DNA metabarcoding will be used to to get hints on preferred foraging habitats and the nestling diet. To measure genetic exchange among subpoulations, I want to use genetic methods like microsatellites. Furthermore, GIS will be used for several spatial analyses.

Interests

My research aims and interests include evolutionary and functional anatomy and hominin stone-tool use. Previous research of mine has included the study of muscle attachment sites (entheses) of fossil hominins in relation to electromyographic data of muscular recruitment in modern humans during stone-tool use. Progressing from this, the aim in my PhD is to apply a multidisciplinary approach in experimental research, exploring the potential links between stone-tool use and production with gestural and verbal communication.

Methods

Mapping hand-brain coordination and evolutionary analysis of muscular and cognitive activity. Using electromyography (EMG) and electroencephalography (EEG) to compare patterns of brain activity in nut-cracking and paleolithic tool use and production to deciper potential similarites with different tool-use and both gestural and verbal communication.

Interests

I’m interested in the evolution and palaeoecology of placental and metatherian, carnivorous mammals during the Cenozoic. Carnivores are an integral part of all ecosystems, but are often overlooked in palaeontological contexts as herbivores are more diagnostic in terms of palaeoenvironment. Carnivorous mammals show a lot diversity in terms of geographical range, habitat, diet & prey choice as well as ecology and therefore show a broad range of specific and interesting adaptations. This makes them an excellent study group to address broader evolutionary questions. I am investigating the Great American Biotic Interchange and here specifically in the evolution and ecology of carnivorous mammals before and after the exchange. This includes their position in the food web, interaction with other carnivores and of course their interaction with potential prey species. This gives also the opportunity to study extinctions of carnivores and broader animal communities over a long time range.

Methods

I use isotopic tracking to investigate the process of extinction and replacement during and after the Great American Biotic Interchange. I try to reconstruct animal diets, environment, habitats and predator-prey interactions with the help of the geochemical proxy of stable isotopes. Stable isotopes are reflective of diet and environment factors and can be preserved in animal tissues such as bone, dentine and tooth enamel that can be preserved in the fossil record. In my study I focus mainly on the use of tooth carbonate, namely enamel. This allows me to utilise carbon and oxygen isotopes for my ecological reconstructions. If possible my investigations are also complemented by the use of carbon and nitrogen isotopes in bone and dentine collagen.

Interests

My PhD project focuses on the analysis of multiple lithic assemblages from Megalopolis basin, in Greece. My research interests are based on a comprehensive study of the artefacts in order to obtain information regarding the technology used for their production, the way in which the raw materials were procured, the settlement strategies adopted, mobility patterns and human behaviour.

Methods

Technological analysis and experimentation.

Interests

I am interested in animal ecology and ecotoxicology. In my PhD project, I investigate the multigenerational effects of monovalent silver ions on the fitness of the water flea Daphnia magna (Cladocera) and the midge Chironomus riparius (Diptera ) in view to compare the relevance of phenotypic plasticity, maternal effects and adaptive evolution in species using different reproduction strategies. Silver products have been used for centuries as biocides, regularly for hygiene and, more recently, as antimicrobials. We are currently observing increasing concentrations of silver, both as nanoparticles and in dissolved form, in our surface waters.

Methods

Multi-generation experiments, toxicity tests, microscopy; optional biochemistry and histology.

Interests

I am a Colombian primatologist interested in ecological and conservation genetics topics. I am passionate about understanding how trophic interactions and genetic diversity are influenced by abiotic and human factors, and how to translate this knowledge so we can work together with local communities to protect biodiversity. My current work focuses on integrating landscape ecology, population genetics and next-generation sequencing.

Methods

In my PhD, I focus on mapping the functional genetic connectivity of Colombia’s red howler monkey and cotton-top tamarin populations by building a genetic database of wild populations of these primate species. By integrating habitat characterization, DNA genotyping and genetic clustering, I aim to compare natural and anthropogenic barriers that prevent gene flow among populations and contrast the dynamics that these species use to face these barriers.

Interests

Genetic variation is a fundamental level of biodiversity that ensures the long-term persistence of species. However, previous biodiversity assessments often relied solely on measures of species diversity and neglected the importance of intraspecific genetic variation for conservation purposes. Indeed, this type of diversity might be put at risk by the intense management of semi-natural habitats. Whereas this link between genetic diversity and man-made disturbance has been well studied in grassland ecosystems, we are lacking these insights in forest ecosystems. Furthermore, an initial reduction of genetic diversity might be a precursor of a pending decline in species diversity. Thus, the questions I want to answer are:

• What is the effect of land-use in forests on intraspecific genetic variation?
• What is the relationship between genetic and species diversity?

Methods

I will use ten plant and arthropod species forest species, respectively, sampled across a gradient in management intensity. Following DNA extraction, I will quantify the level of genetic diversity using molecular data derived by double-digest restriction associated DNA (ddRAD) and low-coverage whole-genome sequencing (WGS). As the level of genetic variation might be partially determined by differences in life-history traits, I will correct for three of them in my analyses:

• Level of niche specialization (generalist vs specialist species)
• Dispersal ability (good vs bad dispersing species)
• Reproductive mode (selfing vs outcrossing species, plants only)

In a last step, I will elucidate the relationship between genetic and species diversity through regression analyses.

As my research is embedded in the Biodiversity Exploratories, I can draw from a wealth of information including weather and climate data but also soil and vegetation parameters. With this broad range of existing data at hand, I aim at obtaining a more complete picture of the processes shaping genetic and species diversity.

Interests

Changes and fluctuations in the environment cause variation in different components of community structure and functioning. The need for a better understanding of the mechanisms that maintain stability of populations and communities in time under environmental fluctuations is nowadays reinforced by the predictions of increased temporal weather variability under climate change.

My research focus on the link between plant traits and temporal stability on different levels of organization – from individual, to population, to community. This knowledge is essential for understanding whether a relationship between traits and stability can be generalized, and thus also used to build more accurate predictions under future scenarios of climate change.

Methods

I will couple an existing long-term dataset on the demography of winter annual plants from the Eastern Mediterranean Basin in Israel along a steep gradient of environmental unpredictability with a field assessment of the relevant plant traits.

I will start with the collection of data on the following bet-hedging traits: seed dormancy, seed dispersal, seed size and traits related to resource-use.
Then I will use generalized linear mixed effect models to assess how the bet-hedging traits determine population temporal stability.
Finally, I will use a clustering algorithm to study the trait-stability relationship on the community level.

Interests

Since my bachelors, I am fascinated by everything that involves human evolution. My current focus is the subsistence strategies that allowed the first populations inhabiting South America to survive in changing environments. During my PhD, I would like to use data from oral paleopathological analyses to explore the dietary habits and nutritional status of these populations.

Methods

I am going to use 3- dimensional topographic scans of dental surfaces to analyse microwear and enamel hypoplasias to investigaste levels of nutritional stress and dietary habits.

Interests

I am interested in the interactions of humans and other animals with the changeing environment in which they live and evolve. How do they move within the landscape? How do the different specien of a community interact? How is evolution influenced by the environment?

The main focus of my PhD research is to characterize the environments and habitat of the mammalian commonities from two fossil formations in Myanmar (Pondaung, and Irrawaddy) dating to the Eocene and Miocene. I will answer questions concerning niche partitioning, and seasonality and evaluate the impact of these environmental factors on the evolution the anthropoid primates.

Methods

For my PhD research I am using stable isotope analysis of enamel carbonates and 3D dental microwear textural analysis to describe the paleoecological and paleoenvironmental conditions in Cenozoic Myanmar.

Interests

The world is currently facing a rapid loss of biodiversity. In order to create effective conservation measures, a profound knowledge about population ecology and the response of species to a changing climate as well as altered land use is needed. So far, my research has focused on amphibians and grassland plants. During my PhD I study threatened butterfly species of open woodlands. My main research questions are:
i) Do larval survival rates differ between edges of forest tracks and clear cuttings?
ii) What are the main drivers of larval mortality (climatic extreme events, host plant senescence, ...)?
iii) How large are the remaining populations of the Southern White Admiral (Limenitis reducta)? Are they part of a metapopulation?

Based on my results, I will finally develop conservation strategies which help ensuring the long-term viability of butterfly populations and which are applicable in regular forest management.

Methods

- field ecology (monitoring of species, evaluation of habitat suitability)
- GIS
- capture-mark-recapture
- population viability analysis

Interests

I am interested in elucidating factors determining plant phenotype.  My master's thesis was focused on the genotype of the plant and for my PhD project I was to incorporate not only the role of plant genotype on the phenotype but the environmental factors as well to study the interaction between plant microbiome and pathogen, and how stable they are across plant genotypes and various environments.

Methods

I am incorporating both classic ecological experimental method such as fitness tests with Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) techniques to measure role of microbiome in host-pathogen interaction under different environmental stressors.

Research

Blackflies, in particular the members of the Simulium damnosum species complex are vectors of filarial parasites of man and animals. The microepidemiology of Onchocerca species and Simulium vectors is little known, especially in the rainforest areas of the Congo bassin, where elimination of human onchocerciasis shall require the use of save insecticides to control the larval populations of the vector species in fast-flowing rivers.

- Biology, ecology and micro-evolution of Simuliidae in Central Africa
- Use of molecular tools for identification of subspecies and vector compatibility
- Identification of parasites and diseases transmitted by Simulium flies in Cameroon
- Zooprophylactic aspects of filarial parasites crosstransmitted amongst man, domestic and game animals.
- Control of human onchocerciasis in areas of loiasis co-endemicity, where ivermectin can not be given

My main objective is to describe the micro-epidemiology of local Simulium and Onchocerca species and strains in Southern Cameroon with a view to compare them to vector-parasites complexes in other parts of Cameroon and Africa and develop appropriate methods for the control of riverblindness in the rain-forest, where mass-treatments are prohibited because of the co-endimicity of loiasis, transmitted by Chrysops tabanids. Ivermectin causes severe neurological pathology in patients with a high density of Loa loa microfilariae in the blood.

Methods

Collection of Simulium and Onchocerca samples from areas of collaborating partners in Ghana, Togo, Cameroon, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Tunisia and Germany
Morphological and molecular identification of Simulium and Onchocerca species and strains
Development of Simulium larvicide testing systems and comparison of larvicide activity of temephos (Abate) and Bti (Tecnar) against Simulium species and strains of the Savanna and the rainforest of Cameroon
Data analysis:  - Mega X, Genious, Itol     

Research

I am interested in theoretical ecology and complex systems theory. In my research, I use mathematical models to improve our understanding of how interactions between individuals, populations and their environment shape communities and ecosystems.

During my PhD project, I study networks of competitive interactions and how the structure of such networks relates to their stability. By combining equation-based as well as individual-based models with empirical data, I aim to understand how the persistence of competitive communities is influenced by different levels of community organisation (self-regulation, pairwise interactions, interaction chains between more than two species) and external factors like environmental disturbances.

Methods

I use empirical data on overgrowth-competition in bryozoan assemblages to construct network models. Then, I analyse how the interactions in empirical networks are distributed over feedback loops. While these models are quite abstract, they allow me to use analytical tools to assess network stability. In addition to this, I will use an individual based model in order simulate the development of competition networks, their stability and feedback loop patterns over time. This individual based model will also be used to assess the effect of spatial clustering and environmental disturbances on network stability. Lastly, I hope to be able to collect new datasets of bryozoan assemblages in Antarctica in order to validate the simulation model and to improve our parametrisation.

Interests

My main research interests focus on the evolution and reconstruction of living conditions of past populations, including reconstruction of diet and mobility patterns but also the effects of environmental and biomechanical stressors on the human skeleton during and after bone development. My PhD project aims to investigate, with palaeoanthropological approaches, secular changes in living standards through the analysis of ~400 stratified graves from the medieval/post-medieval Fransiscan cemetery on place Guillaume II in Luxembourg City. The analysis will focus primarely on the effects of environmental stressors on teeth as those are directly involved with dietary intake, but will also consider effects of biomechanical stressors on bone growth and development such as bilateral asymmetries.

Methods

• Recording of severity of calculus, caries, periapical abscesses, periodontal disease, dental attrition and enamel hypoplasias following established scoring systems (Hillson (1996), Roberts and Manchester (2007) and Trautmann (2012) )
• Metric analysis of bones and specifically joints
• Carbon, Nitrogen, Oxygen and Strontium Stable Isotope Ananlyses will be used to determine the dietary composition and geographical origin of a carefully selected sample of individuals from the cemetery
• Comparison of the results for individuals from the different recorded archaeological layers in order to track changes in living conditions over time
• Statistical analyses to interpret the collected data

Interests

My areas of interest are population genetics, evolutionary genetics, osteology as well as bioinformatics. My PhD project focuses on the population history of South America between the first human settlement through the Beringia and the colonial period. The peopling of the Americas gives us the unique opportunity to study isolated populations that experienced gene flow among themselves but limited impact from outside sources. In addition to that, humans not only survived, but also thrived in the challenging environmental conditions posed by the South American sub-continent, suggesting an incredible evolutionary adaptation process.
With my project I am hoping to shed light not only on how, when and by whom the southern sub-continent was populated, but also on which genetic adaptations were necessary to live in the encountered environments.

Methods

To obtain genetic information, which allows me to assess genetic relationships, I extract DNA from ancient bones and teeth and convert them into genetic libraries. These libraries are then amplified and captured, which permits us to enrich for targeted human DNA. Following this, the captured libraries are sequenced using next generation high throughput techniques, before being processed bioinformatically, including the application of different authentication steps as well as statistical analyses appropriate for population genetics research.

Interests

My research interests are closely related to understanding insect (especially beetle) biodiversity, covering taxonomy, systematics, phylogenetics, morphology, ecology and evolution. The project that I am currently working on will be dealing with the most diverse family of the most diverse order of animals occurring on the planet: Staphylinidae and Coleoptera, respectively. Rove beetles (common name for Staphylinidae) comprise more than 63,650 described species. This incredible diversity reflects on a great variety of ecological interactions and evolutionary adaptations. Our main goal is to perform a comparative study of the head morphology of a subgroup within this family mainly consisting of predators, which means an overall study taking in consideration sclerotized parts and musculature associated to the mouthparts. With this information, we will be able to directly compare differences in the head morphology to better understand the evolution of this important body region in this amazing group of beetles. Such detailed analyses are usually neglected in systematics studies of this and other related groups, so we expect to bring up novel perspectives for comparative studies of Staphylinidae. The study of the head morphology also plays an important role to better understand the biology and ecology of the group regarding their feeding ecology including predator-prey interactions.

Methods

• Scanning electron microscopy
• Synchrotron X-ray microtomography
• Phylogenetic analysis and comparative methods
• 3D geometric morphometrics
• High-speed videography

Interests

Chemical contamination caused by human activities has become an environmental problem worldwide, since chemicals reach the water cycle via point sources.

In my PhD project, I want to determine the temperature- and pH-dependant toxicity of the herbicide nicosulfuron and fungicide azoxystrobin in two freshwater species (Daphnia magna and in early life stages of zebrafish Danio rerio) with the aim to provide realistic effect data which can be used for EQS deviation.

Methods

-Pesticide exposure in test animals

-Diagnostic tools: Endpoints of toxicity and biomarkers

Interests

My research interests in paleoanthropology are the development and life history of extinct hominin taxa. This includes diet and subsistence as well as pathologies and developmental stress during childhood. As a PhD project, I analyse dental enamel hypoplasia and microwear in the dentitions of Paleolithic subadults. Enamel forms during development and hypoplasia indicates growth arrests or developmental stress often interpreted to be related to dietary stress. Neanderthals as well as early anatomically modern humans are included in this research to compare life history parameters and diet across hominins and to allow for subsequent interpretations on the Neanderthal extinction.

Methods

• Molding and casting fossil dentitions with President MicroSystemTM (Coltène-Whaledent) impression material and Epo-Tek 301 epoxy resin and hardener (Epoxy Technology).
• Examination of dental microwear and occlusal surfaces using a Confocal Imaging Profiler [Sensofar Neox]
• Mountains software for analysing and evaluating tooth surfaces and microwear patterns
• Multivariate statistics

Interests

My primary interest is primate dental development and biomechanics, with a focus on hominin evolution. Secondarily, I also concerned with non destructive methodologies. My Ph.D. concerns the investigation of Palaeolithic non-adults subsistence and metabolic stress through exploring dental micro wear and hypoplasia using high resolution dental casts. Evaluating when adult dietary and behavioral practices first appear in different Palaeolithic populations, to better understand child rearing practices and life history events within a ecological context.

Methods

Microwear texture analysis and analysis of dental hypoplasia defects from high resolution casts, consisting of paleolithic adults and non-adults, and a comparative sample of recent individuals.
Dental microwear data collection will employ the latest technological development using the Sensofar Plμ Neox confocal imaging profiler available at the Paleoanthropology Imaging Laboratory at the University of Tuebingen.
For scoring of hypoplasia defects a new highly objective technique will be applied using the Sensofar Plμ Neox confocal profiler will be used instead of the 3-D imaging microscope since it provides higher resolution and much faster scanning speed. Presence/absence of all kinds of hypoplastic defects will be recorded for all the available teeth, yet the focus will be on defects that affect concurrently forming teeth since these would indicate systemic stress as opposed to localized trauma.
Data will be analyzed with multivariate statistics.

Interests

My project focuses on the role of plasticity in primate communication. Individual differences are considered as insignificant because researchers have been mostly focusing on the population level. One of the aims of my PhD project is to focus on consistent individual differences in chimpanzees' communicative strategies and how individuals' communicative patterns may vary across social contexts. Several objectives will thus be addressed:
- Determine the importance of between-individual variations at the group, between groups and setting scales in communicative repertoire and use.
- Determine within-individual differences in communicative signal use across contexts.
- Evaluate the extent to which those two types of variations interact.
In addition to individual differences, I will study the impact of the social group and the research setting of the individuals on the expression of the communicative acts. To do so, I will include wild, semi-wild and captive individuals from different social groups.

Methods

Behavioural data will be video recorded in adult wild, sanctuary- and zoo-housed chimpanzees, using a focal sampling method. After coding the videos, I will use mixed model approaches to evaluate the variations at the group and setting levels. I will then apply a behavioral reaction norm framework to plot individual plasticity and personality across an environmental gradient and I will assess between-individual variation in plasticity using a random regression analysis. To do so, parameters of communicative behaviours will be analyzed: the communicative repertoire, the multimodality of the signals, the persistence and social interaction outcomes.

Interests

Conservation biologist interested in ecology and the distribution of biodiversity. Research interests revolve around sustainable development and the sustainable use of biodiversity mainly medium/large sized mammals as a possible tool/driver for conservation.

Methods

Conduct a meta analysis on published literature regarding different uses of biodiversity and mammal abundance/richness tendencies to explore whether or not use (extractive and not extractive) has any global effects on mammal populations and what variables regulate these effects.

Interests

My main research interest is community responses to climate change and grazing pressure of rangeland vegetation in the Middle East.
My PhD is part of the SAGE project, which aims to empower societies to find science-based solutions to adaptive and sustainable management of natural resources.

Methods

During my PhD I will collect data on plots located in Jordan, Israel and Palestine. Vegetation will be manipulated using 17 plots with rainout shelters with a gradient of 30-90% of precipitation interception to simulate climate change. Within the precipitation treatments sub-treatments will be applied to the vegetation that simulate grazing (clipping) and the removal of abundant and rare species. Data regarding species composition and phenology of plants will be collected during the spring season on multiple points in time. I will work closely together with PhD students from the region that work on related subjects.

Interests

My research deals with lithic production, the manufacture of stone tools, and seeks to answer questions related to early human evolution, as well as that of related hominins. My research will also involve plenty of work related to my computer science background, such as machine learning, and the application of computational methods to attempt to solve challenges faced in archaeology. Whilst my work is focused on questions regarding early humans, I am also very interested in the history and archaeology of the Bronze and Iron Ages.

Methods

My research will involve applying computer science methods such as machine learning to various different lithic assemblages in order to obtain a predictive computer-based model to use for the study of lithic production.

Interests

My PhD focusses on the importance of maize fields for songbirds in summer and autumn. During the breeding season, maize fields are of minor importance for birds but only little is known about the use of maize fields in summer and autumn. Due to the early harvest of most other cultures during summer, maize remains one of the few vertical structures in the agricultural area and might thus be an attractive foraging and resting habitat, especially during bird migration. I will focus on whether bird biodiversity and abundance of maize fields depend on the surrounding habitat composition, especially considering the share of other maize fields as well as forests and woody structures.

Methods

My methods are bird ringing and tagging (with VHF-loggers) to compare bird diversity, abundance and habitat use depending on:
- habitat composition
- food availability (biomass of arthropods)
- weed infestation
I will then use these results to develop criteria, which help to increase the attractiveness of maize fields outside the breeding season.

Interests

I am interested in exploring the interactions between hominins and their physical environments, with an emphasis on the exploitation of food resources by prehistoric foragers. For my master’s degree, I employed zooarchaeological methods to reconstruct Middle and Upper Palaeolithic hominin subsistence strategies at the Asprochaliko rock shelter in Greece. For my doctoral research, I investigate aspects of hominin behaviour and site use during the Middle and Late Pleistocene in the region. The main focus of my work is to explore the potential influence of climate and environmental change on the aforementioned and understand the prevailing conditions under which faunal assemblages were accumulated.

Methods

• Stable isotope analyses on fossil mammals to reconstruct their diet and habitat.
• Taphonomic investigation to understand the processes responsible for the formation and accumulation of faunal assemblages.

Interests

My interest focuses on studying the evolution of human cognition and the ecology and subsistence of human species in the past. I am also interested in the study of behavioral and cultural interactions between humans and animals in the past.

Methods

For my research I will be employing traditional zooarchaeological methods combined with tooth-use wear, isotopic analysis, paleoproteomics, geometric and morphometrics.

Interests

The agricultural intensification resulted in a deprivation of suitable breeding habitats and food sources for birds adapted to open landscapes. To develop and establish effective protection measures for birds in the course of agricultural extensification programs, I investigate the effect of agricultural land use on the abundance, reproduction success and habitat use of a representative farmland bird, the corn bunting (Emberiza calandra). In Baden-Württemberg, the corn bunting occurs in very small population sizes (up to 20 pairs) in about six breeding areas, which differ considerably in habitat composition. I want to detect the used habitat structures for nest building and foraging in each area. In collaboration with nature conservation agencies and farmers, I want to promote the establishment of those preferred structures. By comparing the population dynamics in areas with and without or rather before and after the implementation of protection measures, I will be able to evaluate their efficiency. The conditions of more stable corn bunting populations in adjacent countries or states should be used as a reference for ideal habitat features and effective protection measures.

Methods

• Documentation and comparison of habitat structure, bird abundance, reproduction success and habitat utilization within and between each study area
• Detection of habitat structure preferences with regard to nest site and food search
• Promotion of regional preferred habitat structures
• Repeated detection of population structure (number of individuals, survival rates, reproduction) and habitat utilization (acceptance or rather use of established measures) to evaluate the efficiency of protection measures
• Development of an effective management concept to save the corn bunting and other open landscape birds

Interests

The decline in insect biomass and diversity is of global interest. One of the main reasons for this decline is the intensification of agriculture, with frequent mowing of grassland also playing a role. Not only due to direct mortality during the mowing process, but also by destroying food resources and shelter.

During my PhD, I’d like to develop a more insect-friendly mowing machine in collaboration with agricultural engineers from the University of Hohenheim.
Thereby my focus is on ground beetles, rove beetles, true bugs and spiders.

Methods

I will use pitfall traps and other trapping methods in the field to quantitatively and qualitatively investigate the short- mid- and long-term influence of different mowing techniques on insect diversity. The determination of the individuals will be done on species level to calculate diverse biodiversity indices.

Interests

My research interests are in prehistoric archaeology, evolutionary biology, and the application of biomolecular methods to archaeological contexts. My research project aims on employing aDNA and ZooMS analysis to gain perspective on speciation, hominin subsistence and paleoenvironment during the Middle Pleistocene in Europe. Recent developments in ancient DNA technology have provided the opportunity for us to study a growing number of genomes from the Middle Pleistocene, opening up a time period previously relatively unexplored with biomolecular methods.

Methods

-MicroCT Scanning
-Sampling and DNA extraction
-Library preparation
-Sequencing and bioinformatic analysis
-Zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry (ZooMS)

Interests

My main research interest is the interaction between hominins and (medium-sized) carnivores during the late Pleistocene. This includes on one hand the use of these animals by the Neanderthals and anatomically modern humans (AMH), on the other hand the impact of hominin behavior on the niches of these animals. This main complex includes more detailed questions, for example: Is there a special hunting strategy concerning the medium-sized carnivores? How did hominin behavior affect the niches of medium-sized carnivores? Are there any indications for taming of (medium-sized) carnivores? Are the interaction patterns between hominins and medium-sized carnivore the same in Middle Paleolithic context and Upper Paleolithic contexts? Additionally, I am very interested in the analysis of microvertebrates (microfauna) to reconstruct carnivore’s diet and the palaeoecology of the sites.

Methods

I use zooarchaeological methods, e.g. analysis of butchering marks, burning and fragmentation as well as morphometrical analysis of the postcranial bones (reconstruction of hunting patterns and population structures) to reconstruct the hominin use of carnivores. To investigate the hominin impact on the carnivore’s niches, I use stable isotopes (C, N and S) from carnivore’s bone collagen and reconstruct the individual diet and origin. The combination of these methods helps me to reconstruct the interaction of hominins and carnivores during the last glacial period.

Interests

My areas of interest are paleoanthropology, bioarchaeology, paleopathology and prehistory. My PhD research focuses on the investigation of traumatic injury frequencies in Neanderthals and Upper Paleolithic modern humans. The analysis of trauma types and frequencies is a useful approach to reconstruct behavior and life circumstances of past humans. The project aims at characterizing Paleolithic trauma patterns on a population level to address the question of whether there are differences in trauma rates between Neanderthals and Upper Paleolithic modern humans.

Methods

The study is based on the published literature on Middle and Upper Paleolithic fossil remains from Eurasia. Following a comparative approach, skeletal remains are quantified to place particular emphasis on the factor of differential skeletal preservation. I will characterize trauma patterns, analyze potential differences between Neanderthals and modern humans, and contextualize the findings using archaeological and anthropological data.

Interests

My research focus is on the application of virtual anthropology in the study of human evolution. For my doctoral dissertation, I will be reconstructing and analyzing Middle-Late Pleistocene hominin crania. My research interests are in hominin variation, the effect of masticatory stress on the cranium, and the possible influence of language on the anatomical variation of the vocal tract system.

Methods

Geometric morphometrics, 3D models, phenotypic/genotypic variability, hominin anatomy

Interests

I am interested in epigenic variation in plants and its dynamics in changing environments. During my master study at Fudan Univerity, I worked with an invasiv plant Alternanthera philoxeroides and explored the epigenetic variations (DNA methylation an miRNAs) in its response to flooding. Currently I am working with Arabidopsis thaliana to investigate epigenetic variation under variable heat stress, and test its heritability.

Methods

We are currently planning to use both Methylation-sensitive AFLP and HPLC to investigate genome wide methylation pattern and global methylation level in plants under different stress treatments. We will integrate these data with phenotypic and genetic data to examine their relationships.

Interests

DNA methylation in plants was shown to be heritable and at least partially independent on the underlying genetic sequence. It was also shown to be responsive to some environmental stimuli and it was therefore suggested to provide plants with a mean of "rapid evolution". My research focuses on understanding the role of epigenetics in local adaptation of plants and its potential role in evolution.

Methods

European Thlaspi arvense natural populations, collected along a latitudinal gradient (South France to Middle Sweden) will be grown in common garden conditions and screened for DNA methylation variation through a novel custom-made RRBS method. The resulting DNA methylation patterns will be tested for correlation with climatic variables and phenotipic traits.

Interests

My project is part of the Biodiversity Exploratories where the main focus is on the relationship between different levels of biological diversity and land use intensity, as well as other environmental factors. More specifically, I will investigate the natural epigenetic variation in plant species from grasslands. In the first part of my work, I will assess variation in DNA methylation from field-collected leaf samples. A second step will be to sow the seeds originating from these populations in a common garden and see how much of this variation is inherited. In a third step, specific loci with variation in DNA methylation will be analysed by epigenotyping-by-sequencing.

Methods

In the first two phases of my work I will be using methylation-sensitive AFLP (MS-AFLP of MSAP) to obtain neutral markers of epigenetic variation. In the last part I will retrieve DNA methylation data at a single-nucleotide resolution using bisulphite sequencing. The data will be analysed in light of land use intensity and former population genetic and phenotypic data.

Now field ecologists in the Biosphere Reserve Rhön.

Interests

My dissertation is focussing on visual signals and their ecological functions in marine fish. Specifically, I investigate the role of red fluorescent fish colouration in a blue-dominated underwater environment.

I am especially interested in colour signals as an adaptation of sexual selection and potential private communication.

Methods

My methods encompass a combination of physiological characterisations within the teleost visual system and a range of behaviour experiments.

Interests

I am interested in ecology, conservation and biodiversity of species and genetics, especially in conservation and landscape genetics. In my PhD project I am testing a novel conservation approach with three species (House sparrow, Buff-tailed bumblebee and Narrowleaf plantain). I will investigate the intraspecific genetic variation of these species in an environmental context and compare this biodiversity measure with other measures of biodiversity. I want to assess the efficiency of different measures of biodiversity for two surrogate countries (Bulgaria and Romania) for future conservation prioritization.

Methods

Testing a novel conservation approach by mapping intraspecific genetic variation in an environmental context

• molecular work (NGS)
• fieldwork in Romania and Bulgaria
• ecological assessment of habitats and species richness
• landscape genetic modelling techniques

Interests

The occurrence of plants in almost every environment on the planet is a reminder of how evolution can drive local adaptation and phenotypic plasticity. The question remains whether plants can survive in a changing climate through phenotypic plasticity and/or through genetic adaptation. My interests lie in how changes in rainfall can affect plants at the species, population and individual level and whether plants subject to altered rainfall patterns and amounts are able to survive, adapt and thrive. My PhD research focuses on disentangling the processes underlying community change and to establish just how vulnerable plants are to environmental changes.

Methods

My PhD research is comprised of two parts; I will travel to Israel and Jordan in the Middle East to collect seeds and leaf samples of Brassicaceae species situated along a natural rainfall gradient, as well as being manually subjected to more or less rainfall. Furthermore I will establish pollination and herbivory experiments in the field. Back in Tübingen, I will establish and maintain controlled greenhouse experiments using seeds collected from the Middle East and subject all plants regardless of site origin to a common environment: These glasshouse experiments will enable me to determine whether populations of species are genetically or phenotypically different from one another. This will highlight whether plants can adapt to changing climatic conditions or whether species may become extinct.

Interests

My main field of interest is sexual selection, in particular the quantification of sexual selection in both genders. On a more general scale I investigate the effect of mating system characteristics and their effect on the strength of sexual selection in both sexes throughout the animal and plant kingdom. In addition I want to show that the diverse methods used to measure sexual selection potentially affect the findings and their interpretation. In the second part of my dissertation I work on the hermaphroditic freshwater snail species Biomphalaria glabrata, aiming to shed some light on sexual selection in simultaneous hermaphrodites. On the one hand I focus on identifying male and female traits that are under sexual selection and on the other hand I want to provide a case study showing the effect of methods on the measured strength of sexual selection. Additional interest include self-fertilisation and inbreeding depression as well as benefits of polyandry.

Methods

We keep a large number of B. glabrata populations in our wet lab at the University of Tuebingen. The experimental work primarily includes behavioural observations and image analysis and some genotyping using Microsatellites. Furthermore we apply meta-analytic tools to approach general patterns of sexual selection.

Interests

My research interests focus on the evolution of the Eurasian Miocene hominoids and their phylogenetic relationships, using virtual anthropology and geometric morphometrics. My Ph.D. topic aims to reevaluate the phylogenetic position of Ouranopithecus macedoniensis, a Greek hominoid dated back to approximately 8 million years. Over the years, O. macedoniensis poses as a plausible candidate either as a sister group of the australopithecines and Homo or as the ancestor of Gorilla. Hence, the use of more advanced three dimensional techniques provides more reliable results about the phylogenetic affinities of our distant ancestors.

Methods

I work with three dimensional geometric morphometrics and virtual anthropology techniques. I primarily use high resolution Micro-CT scans in order to develop three dimensional models of fossil and extant great apes crania. As a following step, I use various software packages (e.g. PAST, MORPHOLOGIKA, MORPHEUS, EVAN Toolbox, etc.) in order to conduct multiple statistical analyses.

Interests

I am interested in camouflage strategies in marine cryptobenthic predatory fishes. I focus on how red fluorescence might contribute to camouflage in these fishes, and how they are perceived by observers, such as predators and prey.

Methods

Behavioral experiments are conducted in the lab or in the field. I use standardized photography to quantify fish body patterns and coloration and to model the vision of ecologically relevant observers.

Interests

Hand biomechanics, Musculoskeletal stress markers, Bioarchaeology, Sexual dimorphism

Methods

Scanning methods: 3D surface scanning (Breuckmann, Nextengine), microCT scanning

Analysing methods: Morphometrics, Geometric morphometrics (landmarks, sliding surface and curve semi-landmarks)

Research

My research interests are both within plant and animal ecology, focusing on population and community structure and dynamics as well as on invasions. I am interested in the effects of a changing environment on community interactions and how this affects biodiversity and ecosystem functioning.
During my PhD I will investigate how landuse type and intensity (environmental conditions changed by humans) affected the evolution of phenotypic plasticity, an important part of biodiversity, in three grassland species.

Methods

I will conduct common garden experiments with three grassland species from the Biodiversity Exploratories, which experienced variable landuse types (grazing, mowing, fertilization or a combination) and intensities (LUI index - calculated as the standardized sum of the different landuse types). In two experiments plants will either receive a fertilization or a clipping treatment that further allows to calculate an index of phenotypic plasticity per species. PP will also be compared to spatial (vegetational composition) and temporal (change in landuse) heterogeneity in the place of origin. I will further investigate whether PP is adaptive and/or costly and how it relates to general genetic diversity in these species.

Interests

My research interests focus mainly on the morphology and biomechanics of the hominin hand. Within my PhD project I investigate functional adaptations in the hominin hand skeleton and its muscle attachment sites. For this, I analyze entheseal patterns and entheseal shape both in modern humans and fossil hominins. This approach does not only serve to reconstruct habitual usage of the hand in past populations, but also aims to examine the relationship between muscle attachment sites and bone morphology, the ontogeny of hominin hand bones and the development of human manual dexterity.

Methods

I use virtual anthropology and geometric morphometrics to acquire size and shape information from 3-dimensional models of hand bones obtained through surface scans. To analyze this data, I use multivariate statistics.

Interests

My research focuses on understanding the link between early stone technology (namely Oldowan and Acheulean) and hominin cognition. I am interested in understanding the underlying mechanical properties of flake formation. My research investigates what were the characteristics that hominins looked for when they made early stone tools.

Methods

I conduct controlled experiments of flintknapping to collect data that help me examine the relationship between different independent and dependent variables of flake production. Furthermore, the data collected from the controlled experiments will be used to build a ‘virtual knapper', which is a computer simulation program that can flintknap virtually.

Interests

My focus lays on sexual selection on female body colouration. Traditionally, it is the female that is considered to be the choosing sex in mate choice and the male the one that competes for access to females with extravagant colourations and decorations. However, there is also a potential benefit for males for choosing the "best", high quality female to mate with. Male choosiness is expected to evolve also in non sex-role reversed species as a response to individual variation in female fecundity or maternal ability. In addition, conspicuous (colour) characters in females are often considered as a genetically correlated response to selection for male ornaments. However, male choice might select for ornamental traits in females. Many ectothermic vertebrate species show brightly coloured females but very little attention has been directed to the hypothesis, that female colouration evolved in response to sexual selection through male mate choice.

Methods

In my project Iwill investigate male-mate choice in the alpine newt (lchthyosaura alpestris). Iwill correlate male and female phenotypic characteristics with their reproductive success as well as their success of recruitment and measure male investment into mating.

• behavioural tests in a large group aquarium and as mate choice trials
• molecular work: parentage analysis
• analytical work: chemical composition of the skin colour
• colour manipulation through supplement feeding

Interests

My research concerns the investigation of pyrotechnology in the Paleolithic in order to understand the evolution of the relation between human and fire. Further, the analysis of the combustion features is useful to provide new information on how Neanderthals and Modern humans organized their living space. The aim of my project focuses on the diachronic investigation of the continuities and changes in human behavior from the Middle to Upper Paleolithic, through the microcontextual study of the combustion features and related in two transitional sites.

Methods

To perform my research, I will employ the typical analytical techniques used in geoarchaeology such as micromorphology, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (Micro XRF) and organic petrology. The application of these methodologies will provide new information about fire use and fire making by humans during the Paleolithic.

Interests

I came in contact with fossil crocodiles for the first time during my master thesis. I made a morphological description and a phylogenetic classification of a new species (Orientalosuchus naduongensis). Since then I am interested in crocodilian morphology and decided to go deeper into this field. During my PhD, I am now working on the complete fossilized crocodile fauna of an Eocene basin in eastern Asia, containing multiple individuals of three different species.

Methods

For the descriptional work I use a good camera, a graphic tablet and a measurement tool. For the phylogenetic classification, I use a morphological data matrix with which I can score a species. This matrix forms the basis of the dataset, which is then used further to calculate a phylogenetic tree with a more specialized program (e.g. T.N.T.).

Interests

I am interested in the study of faunal remains in order to reconstruct human subsistence strategies during the Late Pleistocene-Holocene. The primary aim of my research is to understand the implications of long-term population growth and changes in residential mobility on the development of animal husbandry practices. To do so, I am investigating diachronic shifts in species representation and site occupation intensity within the paradigm of evolutionary ecology.

Methods

For my PhD, I will focus on the zooarchaeological analysis of the material recovered at two archaeological sites excavated by the Tübingen-Iranian Stone Age Research Project (TISARP) in the Zagros Mountains: Ghar-e Boof (Middle Paleolithic/ Epipaleolithic) and Chogha Golan (Neolithic Aceramic). This analysis includes: 1) taxonomic and anatomical identification of faunal remains; 2) documentation of taphonomic modifications on bone surfaces; 3) determining prey mortality profiles on the basis of tooth eruption/ wear and bone fusion; and finally, 4) statistical comparisons between the different archaeological horizons and set of data in order to assess behavioral continuity and discontinuity through the Middle Paleolithic till the early Neolithic in the southern Zagros Mountains.

Interests

My research interests are in the fields of plant ecology, ecotoxicology, and climate change. My PhD research focuses on investigation of why plants hyperacumulate heavy metals. A variety of hypotheses have been proposed to explain the trait of metal hyperaccumulation (mh). For example, the elemental defense hypothesis suggests that mh may function as a defense strategy against herbivores, while the elemental allelopathy hypothesis suggests that plants may interfere with neighboring plants through phytoenrichment of metal in the soil surface under their canopies. Moreover Metal tolerance and hyperaccumulation in the following are common traits in many Brassicaceae species.

Methods

Particularly, we would like to explore the two hypothesis of mh on two Brassicaceae species, Arabidopsis halleri and Noccaea caerulescens. Allelopathy will be evaluated as the effect of leaf litter of plants growing with and without heavy metals on the germination of coexisting species. Herbivore defense will be investigated by exposing leaves of these plants to herbivores and measuring the leaf metal content. Finally, we intend to investigate cooperative interactions in A. halleri, whose clonal propagation is expected to play a key role in mh.

Interests

Based on the synapomorphies previosly described in my master dissertation, during my doctorate, I want to study Homo erectus morphology in a comparative developmental context. My interests focus on undeveloped fossils, such as KNM-ER42700, and in the understanding how much this feature influences morphology. Taxonomic affiliation of this fossils will be then discussed based on the results of the research. I am studying with geometric morphometric methods also the morphology of fossils (KNM-OL 45500 and Kocabaş) which have a difficult classification.

Methods

I use virtual anthropology method in order to acquire Landmarks (or semilandmarks) based dataset. After acquisition of 3d coordinates, I use them to make quantitative morphological analysis following geometric morphometric methods described in published literature.

Interests

My research is focused on the evolution of tool use in great ape species as well as in the mechanisms of emergence and transmission of behavioral traits. At the moment, I study stone tool production and use. I am interested in comparative approaches that allow us to explore the origins of human culture and specially if and when cumulative culture appeared in the Homo lineage.

Research

I design and conduct ethological experiments with great apes and humans, as well as perform 3D scannings of stone tools.

Interests

I´m interested in the evolutionary history of salamanders of the family Salamandridae and there especially of the "primitive salamanders" (Pleurodelini). In recent years many new species were described mainly of the genus Tylototriton. The evolution of external and osteological characters as well behavioural traits like the mating mode will be investigated in this group. A further interest of mine is to detect sexual dimorphisms in this group. In anuran species it is already known that males often inhabit longer and stronger forearms due to the fact that males use an amplexus during mating. In the group of primitive newts species are present which do and do not use an amplexus for mating purpose. Hence, there might be differences in the manifestation of sexual dimorphism among species that differentiate in the mating mode.

Methods

For my studies I will work with voucher specimens of the target species. By applying morphometrical measurements on a variety of external traits differences among species and sex will be determined. Further, micro CT scan will be used to characterize osteological traits.

Research

I am a PhD student in a DFG funded project on the effect of habitat heterogeneity on species diversity in semi-natural grassland ecosystems (HEDGE 2), which is part of the DFG Priority Programme ‘Biodiversity Exploratories’. I studied Geoecology at the University of Tübingen. My main research interest is population ecology of grassland species and how they are influenced by land-management. My PhD work continues the HEDGE project which focuses on heterogeneity and diversity in grassland ecosystems. With the experimental work I continue a large microcosm experiment of the first phase of the project, conduct a new pot experiment and field work in the three Biodiversity Exploratories. All parts are designed to test the area-heterogeneity trade-off (AHTO) [Allouche et al., 2012]. This model rethinks the effect of heterogeneity on diversity depending on area. There are also possibilities to do a Master or Bachelor thesis on this project as well as to join as a HiWi.

Methods

Prior to my PhD I already worked on plant populations of the species Pedicularis sceptrum-carolinum L. at lake Federsee. In my Master thesis I implemented a matrix model in R to run a population viability analysis (PVA) for this species. I was founding member of the University initiative “Bunte Wiese” (Colorful Meadow). This group motivates the University and the City of Tübingen to change over from intensive to extensive management of within-city greens to foster species richness. A monitoring through scientific works about different meadow species takes place.

For my Bachelor thesis I studied habitat preference in dependence of fish density of the species Cottus gobio in an artificial stream and a small creek in Switzerland.

Interests

I am interested in plant adaptation and rapid evolution. For my master thesis I have used the ex-situ collections from the Botanical Garden of Tübingen to investigate possible maladaptative processes caused by cultivation. After using living plant material to study adaptation and rapid evolution during my Masters I have decided to use stored seed material for my PhD Project (Back to the Future). In this project I aim to investigate recent adaptation to environmental changes (e.g. climate change) using the resurrection approach.

Interests

My main interest is the evolution and adaptation of organisms to environmental conditions. In this context, I am particularly interested in the influence of such developments on other species and the associated adaptation of different organisms to each other. These interactions are especially strong in closely associated systems such as host-symbiont-interactions.
After studying the relationship between reed beetles and their closely associated symbiotic bacteria in my master's thesis, my PhD thesis focuses on the ecology of the microbiome in natural Lotus corniculatus populations. I am investigating the effect that different influences like climate, land use, soil composition, plant genotype or plant age can have on the plant microbiome.

Methods

We will sample L. corniculatus palnts at the plots of the research platform Biodiversity Exploratories and analyze the microbiome of the roods shoots, flowers and seeds of each plant by amplicon sequencing. Furthermore, we will create a collection of cultured core microbe, based on these results. To test the effects of plant genotype on plant microbiome we will create microbe-free plants and infect them with this synthetic microbiome. Subsequently we will RADsequence all plants used in our experiment to obtain precise genotype data and compare these results to the microbiome of the plants. To combine all data we will use the software package CoNet.

Interests

While completing my bachelor’s degree in Biology I developed an interest in human evolution with a special emphasis on brain evolution. The application of virtual anthropology, as non-destructive method, for the analysis of hominin cranial remains is my main research focus. Further my research interests include hominin variation, the interaction between brain and braincase as well as cranial integration and modularity. For my doctoral dissertation in the framework of CROSSROADS, I am reconstructing and analyzing Middle-Late Pleistocene hominin crania and teeth from Greece.

Methods

• fossil reconstruction: CT scanning of the material; manual as well as statistical reconstruction in a virtual environment
• geometric morphometric analyses: multivaraite statistics based on landmark data obtained from the reconstructed fossils and comparative samples

Interests

"Active photolocation” is defined as emitting light with the goal of inducing and spotting reflections in other organisms. The principle assumes the presence of reflective eyes in many organisms, which will appear to blink from the perspective of an observer that has a light-emitting area in or near the eye. This process has been already hypothesized in chemiluminescent deep sea dragonfishes and flashlight fishes, which possess a light organ underneath their eyes. During my PhD I will try to understand the proximate and ultimate mechanisms of active photolocation. My focus will mainly be on diurnal fishes, as many of them possess highly reflective or fluorescent structures in proximity to their eyes.

Methods

My model species are the triplefin Trypterigion delaisi and one of their common predator, the scorpionfish Scorpaena porcus. I will conduct my research combining different approaches:

• Spectrometry: necessary to describe the light spectrum in the environment and to quantify other important phenomena, like the reflectance of an illuminated object;
• Modelling: implementing accurate visual models will allow to predict under which environmental conditions active photolocation is physically possible;
• Behavioural experiments: behavioural experiments, both in the lab and in the field, will be used as the ultimate way to test my hypothesis.

Interests

I am interested in the fields of behavioural ecology, animal personalities, evolutionary genetics and nature conservation. I have been involved in several projects analysing individual behaviour and animal ecology in rodents (common and bank voles). Thereby, I mainly focused on the genetic coherence of behavioural traits and how these behaviours have evolved. I like the combination of genetic laboratory and ecological field work. Working with mammals is a part of my work I especially enjoy.

Methods

My PhD project will combine analyses of individual behavioural traits and cognitive abilities in the Eurasian Harvest Mouse (Micromys minutus). I will use a series of laboratory tests to confirm animal personalities in my study species. In an outdoor enclosure I want to follow individuals throughout their lifespan and I will analysis heritability and ecological consequences of the behavioural and cognitive traits.

• behavioural and cognitive tests using video tracking (e.g. Open Field, Y Maze)
• field work in outdoor enclosure (e.g. life-trapping, automatic RFID recording)
• genetic lab work: parentage analysis

Interests

I am interested in the interplay between culture, technology, and cognition, specifically in the framework of hominin evolution during the Lower and Middle Paleolithic. I wish to understand whether lithic artefacts in the earlier parts of human prehistory were the result of human-like cumulative culture or something more akin to the culture of non-human primates.

Methods

The main means of data collection in this project is the experimental replication of Paleolithic stone tool technologies.

Interests

My work on is focusing on the genetics of ancient pathogens, particularly ones involved in the most destructive historical pandemics such as that of the Black Death during the 14th century. I am interested in the evolution of pathogenic microorganisms over time, especially with respect to how changes have affected their fitness and virulence.

Methods

I use molecular biology techniques specifically designed for ancient DNA work, to isolate DNA from bones and teeth. Pathogen screening of the DNA extracts involves the production of Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) libraries. Subsequently the libraries are subject to hybridization capture, a technique that allows to separate genetic material of interest from a complex DNA mixture. The captured material is then sequenced using high throughput sequencing technologies. Finally, the outcome is analysed using bioinformatics tools developed for NGS data analysis and phylogenetics.

Interests

• Earth surface processes and their quantification using cosmogenic radionuclides
• Application of cosmogenic nuclides to quantify the influence of tectonics and climate change on landscape evolution
• Fluvial Geomorphology, Quaternary Geology

Methods

• Cosmogenic radionuclides 10Be, 26Al
• Major element analysis (ICP-OES)
• Landscape evolution and analysis by means of Topotoolbox (Matlab), GIS and remote sensing

Interests

I am a doctoral student in Paleoanthropology interested in sexual selection and sexual dimorphism in modern humans and in human evolution. My Masters research focused on frequency dependent sexual selection in humans for eye colors. My dissertation research explores the levels of sexual dimorphism in the bony labyrinth across ontogenetically and geographically diverse populations.

Methods

My methods involve using high resolution and medical CT scans of skulls to segment and extract 3D models of the bony labyrinth using software such as AVIZO. Then linear measurements of the height and width of the semicircular canals and cochlea of the visualized bony labyrinth can be made. These non-invasive methods leave skeletal material completely unharmed and intact. Skeletal collections of known sex will be used in order for bony labyrinth results to be confirmed. Since the bone which houses the bony labyrinth is extremely well preserved at archaeological sites, while other sexually dimorphic features often are not, the aim is to confidently apply resulting formulas to skeletal material of unknown sex in the future.

Interests

I am working on detecting and isolating ancient genomes of bacteria and DNA-viruses that infected human populations in the past. Using genome data it is possible to assess the evolutionary histories of specific pathogens by comparing ancient and modern forms. Thus, allowing a better understanding of human (host) -pathogen interactions in the past and present. For me this is highly interesting in regard to re-emerging diseases, particularly those that have caused pandemics or large-scale epidemics in the past.

Methods

Isolating pathogen DNA from human remains (bones and teeth) from the archaeological record can be difficult, because it is often preserved in low amounts in comparison to human and other contaminating environmental DNA. To obtain ancient pathogen DNA I use various molecular techniques for targeted DNA-enrichment, coupled with high-throughput sequencing. Sequencing data is analysed using bioinformatics tools tailored for metagenomic and phylogenetic analysis.

Interests

My main research interests are filial cannibalism, reproduction in general and sexual selection. Studies on these topics often ignore the ecological and social context of the respective population. During my PhD, I investigate the effects of several abiotic and biotic factors on cannibalism, reproductive rates, competition and OSR, using the common goby, Pomatoschistus microps, as a model species. This small marine fish has a complex mating system with plastic sex roles and is highly suitable for aquaria-based research in the lab. Other general interests include the influence of intrinsic interindividual differences, i.e. animal personality, on paternal care.

Methods

While the theoretical work happens here at the University of Tuebingen, most experiments take place at Tvärminne Zoological Station, Finland. Fish are caught from the wild and kept under controlled laboratory conditions. After exposing them to different experimental manipulations, I typically characterise a set of behavioural and reproductive variables, which often involves video recording and photography of egg clutches.

Interests

The space-for-time approach, where spatial gradients are taken as a proxy for temporal change, is often used in biological and geological research. I try to combine this approach with manipulated environmental conditions on-site, to study if short-term responses in plant-soil feedbacks follow the same trajectory as the long-term dynamics.

Methods

In my PhD I use transplant experiments and rainout shelters to disentangle the relationships between climate, vegetation and geochemical effects on nutrient cycling along a climate gradient. My project is part of the EarthShape project, which explores how biological processes from soil, influence topography, and thereby shape the Earth surface and modulates the impact of climate change on the Earth surface.

Interests

Within my PhD project I investigate how land use and climate change affect the flowering phenology of forest understory plants. I combine field surveys with the study of herbarium collections to track potential changes of phenology over time as a consequence of changing forest management and environmental conditions. Genomic changes in the same plants will be studied as part of a close collaboration with the Ancient Genomics & Evolution group at the MPI for Developmental Biology. Having worked on plant animal interaction – especially pollination and seed dispersal behavior – during my master studies I am also interested in behavioral ecology and, due to my background in the social sciences, in interdisciplinary approaches especially the philosophy of biology.

Methods

• Monitoring of the phenology of common spring flowering herbs in the forest plots of the Biodiversity Exploratories Hainich-Dün and Schwäbische Alb.
• Analysis of phenological data in relation to forest management, weather, and other factors
• Herbarium surveys of historical specimen from the same species and regions. Tests for long-term trends and climatic correlates.
• Comparisons between historical and current phenological data.
• Synthesis: Contrasting phenological vs. genetic changes, comparison between species

Interests

I am interested in exploring how large-scale changes in climate and environment affect prehistoric hunter-gatherer behavior at the regional and local level. Specifically, I am interested in changes in human subsistence behavior and landscape and site use. For my master's degree I explored this question by examining late Quaternary oscillations in the El Nino Southern Oscillation system in northern Baja California. Currently, my PhD work has shifted my research to Europe where I am exploring these questions in the context of the Pleistocene-Holocene transition in the Swabian Alb of Southwest Germany. My key research questions for this work include: What are the local environmental and climatic changes occurring in this region during the Pleistocene-Holocene transition as reflected in microfaunal assemblages? In what ways, if any, do hunter-gatherer subsistence behaviors and site use respond to these changes and how do these responses fit into our current understanding of the Magdalenian, Late Paleolithic, and Mesolithic cultures?

Methods

To explore these research questions, I am working with both macro- and microvertebrate remains from archaeological sites in the Swabian Jura that date to the Pleistocene-Holocene transition and have assemblages from the Magdalenian and Mesolithic. Microvertebrate analyses focus on local-scale paleoenvironmental reconstruction and taphonomic analyses that have implications for human and non-human predator use of the sites. Macrovertebrate analyses focus on reconstructing changes in human subsistence using both traditional zooarchaeological methods and isotopic analysis. Used jointly, and with the application of theories from behavioral ecology, these datasets have the potential to reconstruct human site use and create interpretations that are testable and easily comparable to previous and future work in the Swabian Jura.