Selected publications

Wastewater still contains high amounts of trace organic compounds and organic matter after the wastewater treatment plant. These compounds are usually discharged to rivers with the treated water. The study shows that in the hyporheic zone of the river, i.e. the river sediment, degradation of trace organic compounds takes place simultaneously with a change in the composition of organic matter.

When a species colonizes an urban habitat, differences in the environment can create novel selection pressures. The authors tested for consistent urban selection signals in multiple populations (213 complete genomes) of the burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia), a species that colonized South American cities just a few decades ago.

Female moles not only have ovarian, but also testicular tissue that produces male sex hormones – which lets them diverge from the categorization into two sexes. A team led by Berlin researchers Stefan Mundlos and Darío Lupiáñez describes which genetic modifications contribute to this singular development.

The authors have investigated the relationship of bird families. For the first time, they have been able to clarify the relationship of all families of non-passerine birds and almost all families of passerine birds by transcriptomic data. The new family tree is based on gene sections (3‘‑UTRs) that do not code for proteins, but contain sequences that are specific to the families and their genera.

Fishing primarily removes larger and more active fish from populations. It thus acts as a selection factor that favours shy fish, as this study led by IGB shows. 

The authors compared stable isotopes of water in the plant stem (xylem) and in the soil over a complete growing season at five northern experimental sites to understand where plants get their water from and what the temporal dynamics are of such root water uptake. This paper was a main finding of an ERC Grant.

The authors used a spatially explicit population dynamics model for the barbel to investigate the functional dependencies of sub-habitats. They showed that revitalising only spawning or only juvenile habitats is not effective; the functional unit and a minimum size of habitats are essential. The model helps to predict the revitalisation success on the basis of the size.

The authors studied water partitioning in different urban green spaces using stable isotopes. During the warm and dry 2019, evapotranspiration losses of grass and trees were higher than those of potentially more drought-resilient shrub. The study contributes to a better understanding of urban ecohydrological partitioning, which will be essential to sustainably meet water demands of urban green.