Diversity and palaeoecology of the latest Cretaceous vertebrates from Transylvania
Drill a little bit deeper
Monitoring of Vertebrate Use of Caves
Exzellenzcluster TERRA
Exzellenzcluster HUMAN ORIGINS
Powerful Plants
Ökologische Entwicklung des ehemaligen Gipsbruchs Entringen/Breitenholz
From Ornaments to Ecosystems
Isotopenökologie des Wolfs in der Lausitz
Stable Isotope Analysis of Prehistoric Aquatic Resource Use at Hohle Fels
We are the Biogeology Research Group
Our group explores how organisms have adapted to and influenced their environments over time, with a particular focus on hominid-related periods in Earth’s history. We investigate the ecological roles of both extinct and extant species, using isotopic analyses of ancient remains to reconstruct diets, habitats, and ecological niches. Our research spans a wide temporal and taxonomic range, from the woolly mammoths of the Siberian steppes to the great dinosaurs of deep time.
By reconstructing past ecosystems and analyzing long-term ecological dynamics, we contribute to a deeper understanding of biodiversity and environmental change. Our guiding principle:
Amanova, M., Drucker, D.G., Fontana, F., 2026. Insights into red deer ecology during the Late Epigravettian: New isotopic evidence from Riparo Tagliente (Italian prealps). Journal of Quaternary Science 41(5): 716-731. https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.70069
Bettermann, A., Csiki-Sava, Z., Bocherens, H., Augustin, F., 2026. Not only boring issues: bioerosion on bones from the Upper Cretaceous of the Hateg Basin (Romania) and the implications for carcass decomposition on Hateg Island. Fossil Record 29(2): 675-705. https://doi.org/10.3897/fr.29.189421
Cruz, E.N. da Silva, Bocherens, H., Dantas, A.T., 2026. Intra-tooth carbon (δ13C) and oxygen (δ18O) isotope records of Eremotherium laurillardi (Lund, 1842) and Toxodontinae, from the Late Pleistocene of northeastern Brazil. Quaternary International 786: 110495. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2026.110495
Drucker, D.G., Bridault, A., Ducrocq, T., Valentin, F., 2026. Mesolithic subsistence strategies in the Paris Basin during the late Preboreal and Boreal chronozones (10.3-9.0 ka). Isotopic insights from human and faunal remains in the Île-de-France region. Bulletin de la Société préhistorique française 123: 203-231. https://www.prehistoire.org/offres/doc_inline_src/515/0-BSPF_2026_2_ARTICLE_DRUCKER.pdf
Ershova, K., Ponomarenko, E., Krenke, N., Krivokorin, I., Bakumenko, V., Pimenov, V., in press. A comparison of pollen indicators of slash-and-burn agriculture in forest soils and peatlands: a case study of Zvenigorod biological station (Moscow region, Russia). Environmental Archaeologyhttps://doi.org/10.1080/14614103.2026.2667614
Roditi, E., Bocherens, H., Konidaris, G.E., Athanassiou, A., Tourloukis, V., Panagopoulou, E., Karkanas, P., Harvati, K., in press. Ecological variability of Hippopotamus antiquus from the Middle Pleistocene of Megalo-polis Basin (Greece): Evidence for dynamic habitat in a glacial microrefugium. Boreashttps://doi.org/10.1111/bor.70094
Dorothée Drucker and Chris Baumann gave an interview about Ice-Age Europe and wolf domestication in the Hegau region to Bild der Wissenschaft.
Chris Baumann gave an interview to SWR about the dietary behavior of modern wildcats (Felis silvestris)
Dorothée Drucker was interviewed by Valérie Gillet for Horizon, the EU Research & Innovation Magazine on her research on mammoth bones in the frame of the ERC-funded project MAMBA
Biogeology Group 2026
Chris Baumann got the Walter-Schall-Award 2026 for his study on the retrospective monitoring on wildcats.
