News

Sufficient light, but fewer dead insects – that's what Selux's “Tal Shield: Insect-Friendly Street Lighting” provides. The lighting system, developed with IGB, was awarded the German Sustainability Prize in the “Transformation Products Nature” category. A

A research team from IGB has analysed the zooplankton communities in the White Nile and Blue Nil in Khartoum. It is the first study of plankton in the Sudan Nile since the 1980s and provides an important baseline for monitoring of the river‘s biodiversity in the face of ongoing hydropower dam construction.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has released its inaugural Green Status assessment for the gharial, classifying the species as "Critically Depleted" numbers-wise and habitats-wise, across its former range. One of the co-authors of the expert assessment is Dr Phoebe Griffith from IGB.

A study  of the physical characteristics of the Aral Sea shows continuous mixing of the water layers, which supplies the upper layers with nutrients and the bottom of the lake with oxygen. However, even small changes in water level or transparency (e.g. due to increased algal production) can bring the lake out of balance.

In 2025, the Forschungsverbund Berlin will celebrate a special anniversary: the Marthe Vogt Award for outstanding young women scientists turns 25. In the anniversary year, the award goes to IGB's researcher Dr. Afroditi Grigoropoulou. 

Researchers from the Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) are releasing young European sturgeons into the Elbe. This extinct and strictly protected migratory fish is considered an umbrella species, meaning that many other riverine animal and plant species also benefit wherever its demanding requirements are met. 

In the summer of 2022, toxins produced by the brackish-water alga Prymnesium parvum killed around 1,000 tonnes of fish in the River Oder. IGB researchers analysed the toxic effect of the brackish water algae Prymnesium parvum on the blood cells of various fish species in the River Oder. The results revealed species-specific differences in sensitivity to the toxins.

Professor Luc De Meester is stepping down after five years of leading the Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) to return to the University of Leuven in Belgium. During his time in charge, the Institute established important strategic initiatives and increased its international visibility. Professor Sonja Jähnig will take over as interim director.