News

Aquatic fungi are among the least researched groups of organisms on Earth. A video project reveals their hidden world.

IGB gave feedback in the Call for Evidence on the new EU Bioeconomy Strategy and highlighted the central role of water and freshwater ecosystems.

Promoting scientific progress as a top priority. This is how Mark Gessner outlines the core mission of the Society for Freshwater Science, the world's most important professional society for river ecology today. Equally important, however, particularly in these disturbing times for science policy, is to highlight the relevance of freshwater research for intelligent water resource management and to communicate the importance of freshwater to the broader public.

Freshwater mussels are the industrious cleaners of lakes and rivers, filtering small algae out of the water and keeping it clear. This positive image has suffered since the spread of the invasive quagga mussel. The voracious appetite of this newly introduced species means that fish in Lake Constance and other water bodies are deprived of plankton as a source of food. Keeping them in check also costs a lot of money: masses of quagga mussels clog up pipes and boats. We put five questions to IGB researchers to find out more about these industrious filter feeders.

Without algae, little would function in aquatic ecosystems: they are a key component of the aquatic food web and provide oxygen for respiratory animals. But there is ample evidence that their abundance and composition are shifting as a result of climate change. This often has alarming consequences for the communities that live in rivers and lakes – and for us humans. 

IGB researchers gave feedback in the EU consultation on the GreenData4All initaitive.

The World Meteorological Organisation's (WMO) latest report on the state of the world's climate shows that global warming is accelerating, with a particularly sharp increase in 2024 – and with far-reaching and in some cases irreversible consequences for our inland waters. Rising temperatures and changing water levels are driving new ecological dynamics: oxygen-free zones are expanding in lakes, the composition of species communities is changing and animals are adapting their behaviour – often struggling to obtain sufficient food.

IGB researchers gave feedback on the planned European Water Resilience Strategy and underlined the relevance of freshwater ecosystems.