Gülce Yalcin
Profile
Plankton ecologist with an expertise in plankton responses to climate and human stressors, combining trait-based community analyses, imaging flow cytometry, and large-scale mesocosm experiments to study biodiversity, resilience, and ecosystem functioning in freshwater ecosystems.
Experience
Since 2024 (December): Postdoc Researcher, IGB Department of Plankton and Microbial Ecology
2020-2025: Lecturer, METU Centre for Ecosystem Research,
2018-2020: Project Assistant, AQUACOSM Project (EU H2020)
2016-2018: Marine Biologist, Danish Hydraulic Institute
2013-2015: Research Assistant, METU Institute of Marine Sciences
Education
PhD, METU Department of Biological Sciences, Limnology Laboratory, 2024
MSc, METU-IMS Department of Marine Biology and Fisheries, 2015
BSc, METU Department of Biological Sciences, 2013
Awards
2024: IGB- Promising Early Career Post-Doc Fellowship
2023: Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBİTAK) 2214-A International Research Fellowship Program for PhD Students (IGB)
2021-2023: TÜBİTAK 2250 Performance Award (PhD)
2023: International Stage of SIL Brian Moss Student Competition
2014: TÜBİTAK 2224-A Grant Program for Participation in Scientific Meetings Abroad
2013: METU Student Performance Award (MSc)
2010-2013: METU High Honor/Honor List (BS)
Professional activities and memberships
ECR Board Member , Society of Limnology (SIL), in Communications and Publications Committee
Member, The Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO)
Publications
All Publications
2025
Yalçın, G., Yıldız, D., Yetim, S., Koursioti, S., Gürol, I.E., Uyar, Z.D., Ger, K.A., Jeppesen, E., Beklioğlu, M. Terrestrial Dissolved Organic Carbon Outweighs Warming in Shaping Bacteria and Ciliates in Freshwater Mesocosms (under review in Hydrobiologia)
Yıldız, D., Yalçın, G., Calderó-Pascual, M., Metin, M., Kavak, P., Dede, C., Spoljar, M., Gottstein, S., McCarthy, V., Nejstgaard, J. C., Jeppesen, E., Ger, K. A., & Beklioğlu, M. (2025). Allochthonous matter quality regulates functionality of lake zooplankton. Hydrobiologia, 852, 2645–2667. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-024-05774-1
Hasnain, S., McCarthy, V., Amorim, C., Cabrera-Lamanna, L., Drohan, E., Dilbe-Uyar, Z., Yalçın, G., Yıldız, D., Beklioğlu, M., & Ger, K. (2025). Transgenerational plasticity to warming decreases nutrient release by a keystone grazer [Preprint]. EcoEvoRxiv. https://ecoevorxiv.org/repository/view/9204/
2024
Yalçın G., Yıldız, D., Calderó-Pascual, M., Yetim, S., Şahin, Y., Parakatselaki, ME., Avcı, F., Karakaya, N., Ladoukakis, EM., Berger, S.A., Ger, K.A., Jeppesen, E., Beklioğlu, M. Quality Matters: Response of Bacteria and Ciliates to Different Allochthonous Dissolved Organic Matter Sources as a Pulsed Disturbance in Shallow Lakes. Science of Total Environment, Volume 916 (2024) https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170140
2022
Yıldız, D. and Yalçın, G. et al. (joint first authors) Effects of a Microplastic Mixture Differ Across Trophic Levels and Taxa in A Freshwater Food Web: In Situ Mesocosm Experiment, Science of Total Environment, Volume 836, (2022)155407, ISSN 0048-9697, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.155407
2021
Calderó-Pascual, M., Yıldız, D., Yalçın, G. et al. The importance of allochthonous organic matter quality when investigating pulse disturbance events in freshwater lakes: a mesocosm experiment. Hydrobiologia (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-021-04757-w
2020
Stanković, J., Milošević, D., Savić-Zdraković, D., Yalçın, G., Yıldız, D., Beklioğlu, M., Jovanović, B. Exposure to a microplastic mixture is altering the life traits and is causing deformities in the non-biting midge Chironomus riparius Meigen (1804), Environmental Pollution, Volume 262 (2020) 114248, ISSN 0269-7491, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2020.114248.
Theses
Yalçın G., Beyond The Surface: Unraveling The Impacts Of Microplastics, Dissolved Organic Carbon And Warming On Bacteria And Ciliates (Published PhD Thesis), Graduate School of Arts and Science, Middle East Technical University, (2024) January
Saydam G., Cetacean Distribution in the Southern Black Sea: An Acoustic Approach (Published Master Thesis), Graduate School of Marine Sciences, Middle East Technical University, (2015) September