Experimental & Applied Ecology

The group was established in 2021. Next to own research the group also coordinates the ecological research, supervises the related infrastructure and provides training and counseling for other LIB researchers and students.

With it´s innovative research in lab and field approaches, the group contributes to the monitoring of Biodiversity change. Beyond pure monitoring approaches, we aim to reveal the causes and effect-chains of the drivers of climate- and Biodiversity change in the Anthropocen to derive and predict consequences for species and whole communities.

Aims

• Experimental manipulation of drivers of biodiversity change
• Method standardization for integration in monitoring schemes
• Develop and apply innovative devices and biodiversity monitoring approaches
• Understand the structure of ecological communites
• Integrate functional traits, multitrophic interactions and movement ecology
• Set up hypothesis networks based on ecological theory
• Predict future scenarios on Biodiversity
• Train future ecologists & taxonomists
• Function as an integrative LIB Ecological Lab

Approaches

• Monitoring on landscape level under anthropogenic land-use & environmental gradients
• Field experiments with treatments & replicated design
• Controlled experiments in greenhouse and climate chambers
• Technology development
• Semi-automated image recognition bulk sample identification and pre-sorting
• Methods comparison and benchmarking
• Theory based experiments on species interactions

To achive these goals, the section is interconnected to other groups of the zbm, such as Conservation Ecology, Metabarcoding, Geo-Paleology and Mineralogy, and across the LIB with other groups in all centres, the zmb and the ztm, and the central research facilities (such as the Biobank, Biodiversity Informatics, Morphology Laboratory).

Equippment

• Invertebrate Monitoring: Funnel-/pitfall traps, Windowtraps, Vanetraps, sweep nets, audio-detection devices (Audiomoth-detectors), Lighttraps*(Section Conservation Ecology), Malaise-Traps*( Section Conservation Ecology), AMMOD-System*(Section Metabarcoding)
• Vertebrate Monitoring: Wildlife Cameratraps, audio-detection devices (Audiomoth-detectors), Handheld optical devives (Binoculars, Spotting scope)
• Upcoming: Insect rearing chambers & other laboratories
• Upcoming: Experimental sides at LIB & Research farm/ Field station