Ramona Irimia

I am a plant ecologist with an interest in ecological and evolutionary processes underlying species adaptation to changing environments. I use invasive species as study systems and a combination of field, common garden experiments and genomics to investigate species resilience to climate change, invasive abilities and adaptive potential across native and introduced ranges. During my first postdoc, I investigated how climate and the biotic environment (enemy pressure), relate to population performance and impact in native and invasive knotweeds. Currently, I use herbarium specimens and historical DNA to study the evolutionary history of invasive Japanese knotweed.

Uncovering the genetics of an iconic plant invasion through museomics (Research Seed Capital (RISC) for Junior Researchers of The Ministry of Science, Research and Arts of Baden-Württemberg (2023).

Spatiotemporal dynamics of invasion in a global invader plant (BMBF and the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Science, 2022-2023).

Evolution of plant defenses during a plant invasion (DFG-NSFC, 2020-2022).

CloneInvasion – Eco-evolutionary dynamics of biological invasions reconstructed from ancient DNA (H2020-MSCA-IF, 2022-2023).

Irimia RE, Montesinos D, Chaturvedi A, Sanders I, Hierro JL, Sotes G, Cavieres LA, Eren Ö, Lortie CJ, French K, Brennan AC (2023). Trait evolution during a rapid global weed invasion despite little genetic differentiation. Evolutionary Applications.

Irimia RE; Hierro JL, Branco S, Sotes G, Cavieres LA, Eren Ö, Lortie CJ; French K, Callaway RM, Montesinos D (2021). Experimental crossing among geographically disjunct populations of an invasive plant yields a global mosaic of reproductive incompatibility and heterosis. Journal of Ecology. 

Irimia RE, Lopes SMM, Sotes G, Cavieres LA, Eren Ö, Lortie CJ, French K, Hierro JL, Rosche C, Callaway R, Pinho e Melo TMVD, Montesinos D (2019). Biogeographic differences in the allelopathy of leaf surface extracts of an invasive weed. Biological Invasions 21 (10): 3151-3168.

Žerdoner Čalasan A, Kretschmann J, Filipowicz, NH, Irimia RE, Kirsch M, Gottschling M (2018). Towards global distribution maps of unicellular organisms such as calcareous dinophytes based on DNA sequence information. Marine Biodiversity 49:749-758. 

Irimia RE, Montesinos D, Eren O, Lortie CJ, French K, Cavieres LA, Sotes GJ, Hierro JL, Jorge A, Loureiro (2017). Extensive analysis of native and non-native Centaurea solstitialis L. populations across the world shows no traces of polyploidization. PeerJ 5:e3531. 

Irimia RE, Gottschling M (2016). Taxonomic revision of Rochefortia Sw. (Ehretiaceae, Boraginales). Biodiversity Data Journal 4: e7720.

Irimia RE, Pérez-Escobar OA, Gottschling M (2015). Strong biogeographic signal in the phylogenetic relationships of Rochefortia Sw (Ehretiaceae, Boraginales). Plant Systematics and Evolution 301:1509-1516. 

Irimia RE, Gottschling M (2015). A new species of Rochefortia (Ehretiaceae, Boraginales) from the Lesser Antilles. Phytotaxa 236:62-70. 10.11646/phytotaxa.236.1.5.