Behavioural Ecology

Prof. Dr. Barbara Caspers (she/her)

Research Interests

I am a behavioural ecologist mainly interested in the function and mechanism of chemical communication,  the evolution of chemical cues in vertebrates and how relatedness is encoded in body odours and the impact of microbes on communication.

Thanks to a Freigeist Fellowship of the VolkswagenFoundation I am currently investigating the function and mechanism of olfactory kin recognition in zebra finches, trying to understand how relatedness is signaled in body odours. With a combination of behavioural experiments, chemical analysis of body odours and skin microbe community analysis  I am aiming to gain knowledge on this question.

I am working on different taxa such as amphibians, birds and mammals, including humans.

My main research interests are:

• Avian Olfaction - The impact of chemical communication in songbirds (and others), and how is relatedness encoded in body odours?
• Host microbe interactions - What is the role of bacteria on body odours and kin recognition?
• Niche choice and niche conformance in fire salamanders.

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Dr. Isabel Damas Moreira (she/her)

Research Interests

I am a Postdoc working on the behaviour and cognition of lizards. I am deeply interested in understanding how animals can cope and thrive in changing environments. Consequently, my research has been focusing on invasive and urban lizards. These are fascinating models to study behavioural adjustments to environments that go through quick and abrupt changes.

My postdoc project focuses on the behaviour of several lacertid lizard species from Croatia, that differ in their ability to endure anthropogenic conditions. In particular, I am studying lizards’ cognition, social skills and personality. Only by understanding how animals can deal with changing environments, can we successfully manage our decisions and direct conservation efforts. Furthermore, such knowledge is increasingly important, since the anthropogenic impact on ecosystems is becoming more profound and shows no signs of slowing down.

I am also a field enthusiast, in love with travelling and being outdoors, and passionate about communicating science.

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Dr. Marc Gilles (he/him)

Research Interests

I am a behavioural ecologist interested in the smell of birds.
Previously, I have studied animal behaviour and ecology in Strasbourg (France), Bergen (Norway) and Turku (Finland). I wrote my Master thesis on the effect of early food availability on the development of personality in wild blue tits.
For my PhD, I investigated the role of preen oil and body odour for communication in birds. I conducted chemical analyses and behavioural experiments on different bird species (plovers in Madagascar, blue tits and pied flycatchers in Germany).

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Dr. Sabine Kraus (she/her)

Research Interests

My research focuses on causes & consequences of consistent individual differences in behaviour. I mainly work on selection lines in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata). In collaborative projects, I work on the influence of the microbiome on behaviour, as well as on the inheritance of certain behavioural traits.

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Dr. Öncü Maraci (she/her)

Research Interests

I am a molecular biologist by training, with a broad interested in behavioural ecology and evolution. Currently, I am studying the interactions between animals and their microbial symbionts. I am fascinated by the potency of microbial symbionts in modulating a wide range of biological processes of their hosts. I am particularly interested in the ways that microbial symbionts influence the behaviour and adaptive capacity of their hosts.

My ongoing project aims to identify the factors shaping gut microbial communities in two estrildid finch species: the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) and Bengalese finch (Lonchura striata domestica). I am trying to disentangle the environmental factors from host-specific factors, most importantly host genetics, to understand whether individual microbial communities are a trait of an animal itself. This information would allow us to further evaluate the potential function of gut symbionts in the social communication of the birds.

Furthermore, as a part of a collaborative project, I am investigating the impact of anthropogenic perturbations on the gut microbiota of birds. In the scope of this project, we are studying the gut microbial communities in great tits (Parus major) across a gradient of urbanisation to understand whether gut microbes can facilitate the adaptation of their animal hosts to anthropogenic stress.

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Dr. Christoph Ptatscheck (he/him)

Research Interests

I am an aquatic ecologist specializing in the invertebrate communities in or on the substrates of freshwater habitats (e.g., sediments, dead wood or mosses). I am interested in the macrobenthos like insect larvae, but also in microscopically small meiofaunal organisms. Viewed through a binocular, there are water bears, leisurely walking on their eight stubby feet, rotifers with manifold morphotypes and filigree bodies, tiny crustaceans with cyclops eyes and the omnipresent nematodes, round worms with their typically undulatory locomotion. These taxa are an integral part of aquatic systems and colonize lakes, rivers, highly temporary water bodies such as ponds, puddles, or water-filled plant components, but also groundwater and cave waters in high abundances. Nevertheless, and I still find this very surprising, they often receive little attention in many scientific studies. Because of this and the fact that meiofaunal organisms are well suited as model organisms in laboratory experiments (due to their high availability, their small size, and their simple handling), I have been working with them for years. With my studies I try to answer the following questions:

1. The meiofauna often reaches densities of more than one million individuals per m². So, isn't it unlikely that these small taxa are a trophic dead end, but rather an important food source for larger animals like juvenile fish or salamander larvae?
2. Meiofauna organisms are often restricted in their locomotion and have no dispersal stages but can still effectively reach and colonize habitats in a short time. What are their dispersal pathways and what triggers the dispersal?
3. What effect does climate change have on meiofauna composition, food web structure, and population dynamics?

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Barbara Fuchs (she/her)

Kathrin Engel (she/her)

Research Interests

I am a veterinarian and in addition to my interest in animal health and welfare, I have a great interest in animal behaviour, ecology and microbiology. 

In my PhD project, I investigate the skin microbiome of different bird species. Besides known pathogens, there is a vast number of bacteria on the bodies of all kinds of animals whose ecology and function is not yet understood, especially in avian taxa. I am particularly interested in the compositions of bacterial communities on the skin of different species, social groups and individuals. Further, I aim to explore how bacterial colonisation develops during ontogeny and whether environmental or genetic factors are the main drivers for the formation of group-specific bacterial communities. I am fascinated by the idea that volatiles emitted by bacteria on the skin may be important in shaping a bird’s body odour and therefore communicating information on the individual to conspecifics.

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Sean Grond

Previously, I have studied Environmental Sciences and Ecology and Environmental Change. For my Master's project I estimated population parameters of a fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra) population with Capture-Mark-Recapture Models. In my PhD project I investigate the fire salamander population, inhabited in the Botanical Garden Bielefeld. Fire salamanders are known for high phenotypic plasticity and small intraspecific competition. Thereby, the species can occur in high densities and cope with high levels of anthropogenic impact, given habitat conditions are favorable. This seems to be the case for the Botanical Garden. I investigate the importance of population age structure for population performance by using non-invasive age estimation. Furthermore, I am studying behaviour in the underground shelters, fire salamander stay in during inactive phases. Thirdly, I use ecological modelling for investigating movement patterns depending on habitat parameters. I also maintain a citizen science project about fire salamander sightings in the surroundings of our study area.

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Laurence Jeanjean (she/her)

I am interested in the evolution of animal behavior and ecology. I completed my B.Sc and M.Sc in Sorbonne University (France), and wrote my Master thesis on the preen oil composition of Pied Flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca) in Bielefeld University.
During my PhD, I will study the impact of genetic diversity within broods on chick performance by conducting cross-fostering experiments on domesticated Zebra Finches (Taeniopygia guttata). My research aims to explore the potential costs and benefits of raising genetically mixed broods, and better understand why this is such a common behavior in the avian kingdom. This will also allow me to investigate the importance of kin recognition, both between parents and genetic vs. fostered offspring, and between genetic vs. fostered siblings.

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Avery Maune

Research Interests

I am broadly interested in animal behavior, cognition, and social evolution. I completed my MSc in Evolutionary & Behavioral Ecology at the University of Exeter, where I investigated how within group heterogeneity can lead to differences in the strength and nature of ingroup discrimination in a primitive termite.
 
For my PhD, I plan to investigate how lizards living in urban environments differ in their social behavior and cognition. I am particularly interested in how social interactions change under different environmental conditions, as well as how social information use from both con-and-heterospecifics can aid in adapting to novel environments. To investigate these questions, I will conduct field experiments in Croatia with several lacertid lizard species that differ in their ability to inhabit urban environments.
 

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Max Mühlenhaupt (he/him)

Research Interests

I am a PhD student interested in evolutionary ecology and herpetology. Previously, I have studied Biology (B.Sc.) at Free University Berlin and M.Sc. Biology with a focus on Biodiversity, Evolution and Ecology at FU Berlin. During my Bachelor's studies, I compared different methods of testing endurance capacity in lizards and in my B.Sc. thesis, I investigated the relationship between behavioural and morphological
anti-predator traits in damselfly larvae. During my M.Sc. thesis, I examined evolutionary drivers of biological invasions in African toads.

During my PhD I would like to study animal personality in fire salamanders within the collaborative research center NC³ ("A Novel Synthesis of Individualisation across Behaviour, Ecology and Evolution:
Niche Choice, Niche Conformance, Niche Construction (NC³)" funded by the DFG. Specifically, I want to investigate how different behaviours influence niche choice in adult fire salamanders and if different personalities covary with individual dispersal, growth rate, and coloration.

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Nadine Schubert (she/her)

Research Interests

It always fascinated me how genetics and immunology might act together to drive behaviour. I am thus investigating potential relationships between the MHC, microbiota and body odour in banded mongooses (Mungos mungo). Furthermore, I am interested in the anatomy of scent glands, population genetics of mongoose populations in zoos, movement ecology and conservation.

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Laura Schulte (she/her)

Research Interests

I studied Fundamental and Applied Ecology at Bielefeld University and wrote my master thesis about the colonization of a new habitat with pied flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca). I have established a nest box site for pied flycatchers in 2020 near the city of Oerlinghausen which will be the start of a long-term monitoring.

For my PhD, I am working on the functions and mechanisms of niche conformance in fire salamander larvae (Salamandra salamandra) within the collaborative research center NC³ ("A Novel Synthesis of Individualisation across Behaviour, Ecology and Evolution: Niche Choice, Niche Conformance, Niche Construction (NC³)" founded by the DFG.

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Michael Schulte (he/him)

Research Interests

I am an ecologist and interested in interactions of predator-prey-systems. I studied Environmental Science (B.Sc) and Fundamental and Applied Ecology (M.Sc) at Bielefeld University. In my Master thesis I investigated the “Feeding ecology of Eurasian Lynx (Lynx lynx) in the Harz Mountains, Germany”.
For my PhD I will study interactions between grey wolves (Canis lupus), Eurasian lynx and their prey species (ungulates) along the gradient of human presence in different regions of Croatia. As method I will use camera trap and GPS-telemetry data to reveal possible anthropogenic impacts on the predator-prey-community.

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Jonas Tebbe (he/him)

Research Interests

I am a molecular ecologist working towards my PhD that focuses on the combination of genetic and chemical data to investigate chemical phenotypes in Antarctic fur seals.

The Antarctic fur seal is an extensively studied model species for which genetic and long-term life history data is readily available. Only recently, investigations on the body odour of those animals brought to light that instead of environmental effects, genetic background might be more important for the chemical composition and chemical similarity of related individuals or those who live close to each other.

Showing that such olfactory patterns seem to be stable over time in my graduate studies (M.Sc.), I am now interested in how well chemical patterns are genetically encoded. My work mainly focuses on the association of inbreeding as well as genomic relatedness on chemical diversity and similarity and how the chemical phenotype develops over different seasons. Additionally, I aim to investigate effects of immunocompetence mediated by the MHC genotype on odour and a possible connection to the microbial communities in these interesting marine predators.

In addition to my work on the seals, I am interested in canine sciences, especially cynology.

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Carmen Schwietz (she/her)

I am a master’s student at Bielefeld University in the “Behaviour: From Neural Mechanisms to Evolution” programme. For my master's project, I am investigating the connections between the gut microbiome and the differences in the individual behaviour of bi-directionally selected wild-type zebra finches.

Tobias Wittenbreder (he/him)

I am currently enrolled in the MSc “Ecology and Environmental Change” in order to achieve my master’s degree. For my master’s thesis I am conducting a population analysis of sand lizards (Lacerta agilis) in the nature conservation area Augustdorfer Dünenfeld in North-Rhine Westphalia, Germany. As part of this study, I am comparing five different habitats and their sand lizard populations, trying to find out if there are differences between them, and what might be the reason for these differences. Each animal location is mapped using QGIS and (ideally) photographed for a capture-recapture analysis.
These findings can hopefully inform further work in the nature conservation area Augustdorfer Dünenfeld and help improve the habitat for this endangered species.

Dr. Ettore Camerlenghi

Research Interests

I am passionate about social behaviour and why animals decide to live together and cooperate.
My research combines theoretical approaches with fieldwork to investigate the emergence of complex multilevel animal societies and to explore the consequences in terms of cooperative behaviour for individuals living in such social structures. I particularly focus on songbirds as model species to address my research questions.
 

Dr. Sarah Golüke (she/her)

The perfume of zebra finches - The use of odours and the mechanism of kin recognition

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Dr. Pia Oswald (she/her)

Life history implications of the mother's choice for a larval habitat

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Meike Pust (she/they)

I graduated from the master program “Behaviour: From Neural Mechanisms to Evolution”. Throughout my studies I was interested in the link between environmental factors and animal behaviour. During my master thesis I investigated the establishment of the skin microbiome in chicks of two estrildid finch species, the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) and Bengalese finch (Lonchura striata domestica), and the role of their social environment and their genetics.

Eva Rousselle (she/her)

I was part of the international double degree program IMABEE. After having completed my first year in France in Rennes, I was simultaneously enrolled at the University of Göttingen in Germany for my second year. I am mainly interested in behavioral ecology and herpetology. For my master thesis project, I was part of the behavioral ecology team in Bielefeld working on fire salamanders (Salamandra salamandra). My work focused on the study of niche conformance of fire salamander larvae. For this purpose, we were conducting a reciprocal transfer experiment in Kottenforst in Bonn and using the Amphibian and Reptile Wildbook software for capture-recapture processing.

Manuela Schmidt (she/her)

I studied “Ecology and Environmental Change” at Bielefeld University to achieve my Master of Sciences degree. Due to the sudden decline of fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra) populations by the current threat of the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans, actions are needed to prevent further extinction. For my master thesis I investigated which housing condition is preferred by wild fire salamander.

Theresa Stipp (she/her)

I studied for a master's degree in "fundamental and applied ecology". During my studies I developed a great interest in the European fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra). As part of my master's thesis and in cooperation with the nature conservation authority of „Kreis Lippe“, I collected data on a fire salamander population on the grounds of an open-air museum in Detmold. This data collection is an important component to ensure the protection of this amphibian species. With my work, I used the „Capture-Recapture-Method“ to answer the question of population dynamics, especially population size.

Carolin Stober (she/her)

I did my Master thesis in the MSc programme "Ecology and Environmental Change". I invastigated the differences of the gut microbiome between 3 lizard species living in sympatry, in urban and semi-natural areas, in Croatia. My research goal was to understand if there are differences between species and if the microbiome of the same species differs between urban and semi-natural environments.