Benjamin Wildermuth

@bmwildermuth.bsky.social

Arthropod ecology in different ecosystems. (Functional) diversity, community composition, trophic niches, plant-animal interactions, temporal & spatial patterns

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Environmental science 43%

Agriculture 28%

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Benjamin Wildermuth @bmwildermuth.bsky.social · Mar 19

New publications from the EnriCo RTG framework
Canopy structure explains arthropod #diversity better than tree species identity
doi.org/10.1016/j.ec...
Admixing non-native conifers to native forests does not reduce canopy beetle #diversity
@jappliedecology.bsky.social
doi.org/10.1111/1365...

Reposted by Benjamin Wildermuth

iDiv Biodiversity Research @idiv-research.bsky.social · 1h

New research from @unileipzig.bsky.social & iDiv shows: when non-native plants have been in Europe longer and have spread more widely, they begin to be used by native micro-herbivores at levels similar to native plants. #Biodiversity #iDivResearch
www.idiv.de/non-native-p...

Non-native Plant Species Adapt to Natural Ecosystems Faster than Expected

www.idiv.de

Reposted by Billur Bektaş, Benjamin Wildermuth

Maximilian Pichler @maximilianpichler.bsky.social · 2h

#PhD position!

I’m looking for a PhD Student (1+3 years) to model insect populations using statistical models + deep learning at #TheoreticalEcology, Regensburg (Germany).

Join our team - please RT!

Details: karriere.uni-regensburg.de/tg7w9

#Insects #Ecology #DeepLearning #Ecology #Monitoring

Reposted by Benjamin Wildermuth

Mike Fowler @theorecol.bsky.social · 5h

#PhD on the Metapopulation dynamics of pollinating bees under joint pesticide & habitat fragmentation pressure. Starts Sept 2026 based at Swansea and Bristol Unis.

More project details: bpb-eu-w2.wpmucdn.com/blogs.bristo...

BBSRC SWBio Doctoral Training Programme: www.findaphd.com/phds/program...

bpb-eu-w2.wpmucdn.com

Reposted by Benjamin Wildermuth

iDiv Biodiversity Research @idiv-research.bsky.social · 7h

Gradual change in ecosystems is often underestimated.

On #InsideBiodiversity, Prof. Helmut Hillebrand explains how small shifts can build up over time and space. 💬 “Even small environmental changes already impact the system… and accumulate.”

🎧 Listen here: insidebiodiversity.podigee.io

Reposted by Juan Antonio Hernández‐Agüero, Billur Bektaş, Benjamin Wildermuth

WSL Umweltforschung @wslresearch.bsky.social · 9h

🛰️🌿💻 #PostDoc Alert! PhD in #EnvironmentalSciences, #RemoteSensing or #ComputerVision, and sound ecological knowledge of #biodiversity? You work comfortably with statistical computing and scripting languages? We offer a 2-year PostDoc position: apply.refline.ch/273855/1792/... #ecology #ScienceJobs

Job offer: PostDoc “Remote Sensing for Biodiversity Monitoring” – Eawag-WSL BiMo Initiative (80-100%, f/m/d)
A key component of an effective biodiversity strategy is rapid and scalable monitoring. Eawag and WSL have extensive expertise and experience in novel biodiversity monitoring approaches. The new Biodiversity Monitoring initiative (BiMo) aims to strengthen this research portfolio and generate effective practice implementation. BiMo has a strong focus on method development and outputs with high relevance for stakeholders. In addition to the remote sensing project for which we are recruiting here, BiMo comprises two further projects that will obtain information from eDNA and image analysis, with the joint objective to strengthen capacities at Eawag and WSL for developing and implementing biodiversity monitoring methods. In this project, you will examine the potential and applicability of remote sensing technologies and data (2D, 3D, active and passive sensors on different platforms) to assess and monitor terrestrial and aquatic biodiversity. You will adapt existing methods and available data on national scale to swiftly enhance ongoing monitoring programmes, identify gaps and unsolved issues and design new avenues. You will be actively involved in a large BiMo joint research proposal aimed at third-party funding.
You hold a PhD degree in environmental science, remote sensing, computer vision or an equivalent field and have sound ecological knowledge of biodiversity. You work comfortably with statistical computing and scripting languages (e.g. R, Python). You are highly motivated to analyse data using sophisticated methods and tools. Good communication and organisation skills, an excellent team spirit and fluency in German or English with very good knowledge of the other language are mandatory.

The project is led by Christian Ginzler (WSL) and Dr. Daniel Odermatt (Eawag). The successful applicant will be based and hired in the group of Christian Ginzler at WSL.

Reposted by Benjamin Wildermuth

LIB @leibnizlib.bsky.social · 1d

#LIBresearch: A new study introduces the Global Repository of Insect Traits (GRIT) — a worldwide initiative integrating insect trait data to make insects more understandable and comparable across ecosystems. → doi.org/10.1111/icad.70035

@cscherber.bsky.social

Toward a global repository of insect traits (GRIT)

Biodiversity loss is accelerating, yet insect conservation is hindered by the absence of a centralised, comprehensive trait database. We propose the GRIT, a FAIR, open-access platform uniting datase...

doi.org

Reposted by Juan Antonio Hernández‐Agüero, Benjamin Wildermuth

Dominic Martin @dominic-martin.bsky.social · 1d

Assistant Professorship on Biodiversity, Land Use and Spatial Planning at @vuamsterdam.bsky.social

Deadline: 30.11.2025
workingat.vu.nl/vacancies/as...

Vacancy — Assistant Professor Biodiversity, Land Use and Spatial Planning

Are you committed to contribute to stop the decline of biodiversity? Do you have experience in academic teaching? Do you want an academic career? Then please apply at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.

workingat.vu.nl

Reposted by Tommaso Jucker, Susanne Lachmuth, Benjamin Wildermuth

Tom Timberlake @tomtimberlake.bsky.social · 1d

📢Exciting job opportunity at the Univ. of Bristol! Coordinating our new project on pollinator conservation & management in Nepal, led by Jane Memmott 🐝Suitable for any pollination, agroecology or sustainable development researchers/practitioners : www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DPJ228/r...

Reposted by Benjamin Wildermuth

International Union of Forest Research Organizations - IUFRO @iufro.bsky.social · 1d

#job at Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU):

Professor in Forest Entomology

Duty station: Uppsala, Sweden
Closing date: extended to 1 December 2025

www.slu.se/en/about-slu...

#ForestScience #ForestResearch #entomology

Reposted by Valentin H. Klaus, Benjamin Wildermuth

WSL Umweltforschung @wslresearch.bsky.social · 1d

#PostDoc Alert! PhD in #biology or #EnvironmentalSciences with a background in #microbiology, #genetics or #ecology? Experience with #metabarcoding and #metagenomics🧬? We offer a PostDoc position in #soil #biodiversity: apply.refline.ch/273855/1794/... #bioinformatics #DataAnalysis #ScienceJobs

Job offer: The Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL is part of the ETH Domain. Approximately 600 people work on the sustainable use and protection of the environment and on the handling of natural hazards.

The Biodiversity and Conservation Biology research unit, investigates the diversity of life in its various forms, from genetic to the diversity of species and ecosystems as well as their interactions. For 2 years, starting in Spring 2026, the Community Ecology research group is looking for a
PostDoc in Soil Biodiversity 80-100% (f/m/d)
This position offers an exciting opportunity to participate in an international research project on “Integrating Soil Biodiversity to Ecosystem Services (SOB4ES)”. SOB4ES is a large EU Horizon project testing cost-effectiveness of soil biodiversity indicators and the provision of soil biodiversity-based ecosystem services to build better land management solutions that effectively implement the EU Soil Strategy (www.sob4es.org). In collaboration with international partners, your role in this project will be to explore soil microbial diversity and functions and ecosystem services across European land-use types and biomes. Your will analyse microbial biodiversity and functions datasets, preparing manuscripts, and publishing them in peer-reviewed scientific journals. You will also present the research outputs at local and international conferences and engage with stakeholders.
You hold a PhD degree in biology or environmental sciences, with a strong background in microbiology, genetics or ecology. You have experience with bioinformatics (such as running metabarcoding and metagenomic data pipelines) and data analyses (including advanced statistical models) and wish to develop your knowledge and experience in that field. Fluency in English (both oral and writing), ability to supervise junior team members, excellent communication skills and a collaborative mindset are also key to success in this role.

Reposted by Benjamin Wildermuth

Diversity and Distributions @consbiog.bsky.social · 2d

🌆 How does #urbanisation reshape biodiversity?
A global meta-analysis reveals non-linear effects on ground #beetles 🪲 — with suburban areas often hosting the highest diversity. #Climate factors crucially mediate these patterns.

🔗 doi.org/10.1111/ddi....

Reposted by Benjamin Wildermuth

Loke von Schmalensee @vonschmalensee.bsky.social · 4d

Hi all!

I've been inactive here for a while (all that's going on in the world kind of saturated my bandwidth), so maybe the algorithm won't favor me.

But! I'm curious if anyone of you have been using/thinking about using explainable AI method (xAI) for identifying complex ecological patterns.

Reposted by Simon Harold, Benjamin Wildermuth

Nature Ecology & Evolution @natecoevo.nature.com · 4d

Our November Issue is now live: www.nature.com/natecolevol/...

Featuring research on 🧪

🦆Threats to migratory shorebirds
🌍Phosphorus constraints on global photosynthesis
🦠Evolution of the meerkat MHC

Cover shows a larva of an emperor moth, from Li et al. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Cover image of the November issue of Nature Ecology & Evolution. The image shows a caterpillar of the emperor moth Gonimbrasia belina feeding on a leaf. The cover headline reads "Tree growth and herbivory"

Benjamin Wildermuth @bmwildermuth.bsky.social · 4d

Ah, ok, well, can't wait for that to happen to me :D

Reposted by Julen Astigarraga, Benjamin Wildermuth

Daniel Montoya @danimontoya.bsky.social · 5d

I am pleased to announce a new postdoctoral position in Theoretical Ecology. More info here: info.bc3research.org/2025/11/06/p...

Postdoctoral position in agroecology for TRANSFORM Project

The Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3) is offering a full-time postdoctoral research position to support activities within a Horizon Europe project. The project focuses on developing innovative cr...

info.bc3research.org

Reposted by Zen Faulkes, Markus P. Eichhorn, Benjamin Wildermuth

Alejandro Montenegro @aemonten.bsky.social · 5d

Academics set their metrics and incentives. And that defines everything. Including the future of scientific publishing.

And if at any point, one feels that incentives are being defined from outside, that's what needs to be fought against.

But the power of change lies within.

Reposted by Benjamin Wildermuth

Leibniz-Zentrum für Agrarlandschaftsforschung (ZALF) @zalf.bsky.social · 5d

📢 Extended deadline: Apply before 11 December 2025 for W3 #Professorship “Landscape Data Analytics”! Shaping the future of agricultural landscapes – with data, #AI and real-world research. 🌱

More details: www.uni-giessen.de/d...

#job #datascience #agriculture #research #science

Become a professor (W3) for

“Landscape Data Analytics”

at Innovation Centre for Agricultural System Transformation (IAT)

Photo: Annie White / Unsplash

Application deadline: 11 December 2025

Photo: Annie White / Unsplash

Reposted by Malte Jochum, Benjamin Wildermuth

Biodiversity Exploratories @bexplo.bsky.social · 5d

We’re excited to announce the next confirmed keynote speaker:
Tim Newbold (@tnewbold31.bsky.social, @ucl.ac.uk )
He researches global biodiversity patterns and the effects of climate and land-use change on ecosystems.🌍🐝

Stay tuned for more #BE20conference Keynote Speakers.

#bexplo #conservation

Reposted by Irena Šímová, Benjamin Wildermuth

iDiv Biodiversity Research @idiv-research.bsky.social · 5d

The newest episode of #InsideBiodiversity is out now!

Guest Helmut Hillebrand talks about tipping points and planetary boundaries.

💬 “If you only retrospectively can say, ‘Oh, now we have crossed it,’ then of course it’s rather useless.”

Listen and subscribe now: insidebiodiversity.podigee.io

Benjamin Wildermuth @bmwildermuth.bsky.social · 5d

So it seems that Researchgate gets a bit spammy for senior scientists, but my naive perspective (as someone with an empty postbox on Researchgate) would be that these are maybe people asking for copies of paywalled articles?

Reposted by Monica G. Turner, Mike Flannigan, Paul Caplat , and 3 more Monica G. Turner, Mike Flannigan, Paul Caplat, Juan Antonio Hernández‐Agüero, Christina Dollinger, Benjamin Wildermuth

Ana Stritih @anastritih.bsky.social · 6d

Do you like forests and computer models? 🌳🧑‍💻
Within the Future Forests excellence cluster, we are hiring two modellers for 7 year (!) positions here in Freiburg.

A scientific coordinator role: uni-freiburg.de/en/job/00004...

And and a scientific programmer role: uni-freiburg.de/en/job/00004...

Reposted by Benjamin Wildermuth

Andrew Beckerman @beckerhopper.bsky.social · 6d

New paper out: Response diversity is a major driver of temporal stability in complex food webs. #openaccess, using #opensource software, and delivering novel insights into biodiversity-stability relationships. Bravo to the team lead by Dr. Alain Danet.

royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

Response diversity is a major driver of temporal stability in complex food webs | Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences

Global change constitutes a major threat to biodiversity and ecosystem functions and places the temporal stability of ecological communities at risk. Classic theory identifies species richness and foo...

royalsocietypublishing.org

Benjamin Wildermuth @bmwildermuth.bsky.social · 6d

Hard to say because, as you say, it's hard to disentangle rising expectations and response quality. Further, as prompting improves, bad responses become less frequent and are quite a "shock" when happening.
That being said, yesterday I also had a frustrating experience, it just rambled on nonsense.

Reposted by Malte Jochum, Benjamin Wildermuth

Biodiversity Exploratories @bexplo.bsky.social · 7d

#BE20Conference first confirmed keynotes!

Prof. Dr. Elisabeth Borer (USA)
Borer will share insights on ecological diversity & sustainable landscapes 🌱

Over the next weeks, we’ll introduce BE20 keynote speakers.
📅 June 8–12, 2025, Berlin — celebrating 20 years of Biodiversity Exploratories

#bexplo

Reposted by Ingolf Kühn, Elena Litchman, Billur Bektaş , and 1 more Ingolf Kühn, Elena Litchman, Billur Bektaş, Benjamin Wildermuth

Florian Altermatt @florianaltermatt.bsky.social · 7d

2-years #postdoc #position: #eDNA 🧬🔬for integrated #ecosystem and #biodiversity assessment

apply.refline.ch/673277/1297/...

In the new Eawag/WSL Biodiversity Monitoring Initiative we will strengthen & advance effective and scalable #biodiversity #monitoring methods & implement into practice. 🌐🌳🐟📈

apply.refline.ch

Reposted by Benjamin Wildermuth

Benito Wainwright @benitoexplains.bsky.social · 7d

Leaf? 🍃 Or katydid? 🦗
Our new
@plosbiology.org paper sheds light on how these incredible mimics evolved their disguises, and what this reveals about how complex adaptations arise. We find that coordinated evolution between traits might be the answer… plos.io/4oUE741 1/n

Functional and evolutionary synergy of trait components can explain the existence of leaf masquerade in katydids

The evolution of complex adaptations often involves synergistic changes in multiple traits that lack standalone function. This study shows that leaf masquerade in katydids evolved through concurrent m...

plos.io

Reposted by Ingolf Kühn, Benjamin Wildermuth

Diversity and Distributions @consbiog.bsky.social · 7d

🦋 How will #insects respond to #climatechange? A global review of 351 studies shows no consistent pattern. Some species expand, others shrink, partly due to varied #methodologies. Standardised approaches are crucial to predict future insect ranges. 🌐

🔗 doi.org/10.1111/ddi....

Reposted by Julie L. Lockwood, Benjamin Wildermuth

Journal of Animal Ecology @animalecology.bsky.social · 7d

A new Research Highlight, "computer vision uncovers trait-based insect responses to habitat loss", has now been published to compliment a recently published paper, "life history induces markedly divergent insect responses to habitat loss"
Find them below:
buff.ly/99JdsqF
buff.ly/Rd3TAzB

buff.ly

Reposted by Benjamin Wildermuth

Current Biology @currentbiology.bsky.social · 7d

Just because #ants are so abundant, doesn't mean they aren't also affected by the #biodiversity crisis.

🐜🐜🐜🐜🐜🐜🐜🐜🐜🐜🐜🐜

Michael Gross reports
www.cell.com/current-biol...

Ant diversity at risk

The abundance and expansive success of cosmopolitan ant species have created the impression that they are not affected by declines caused by human interference in ecosystems. However, ant species ende...

www.cell.com

Reposted by Benjamin Wildermuth

Pete Manning @peteecology.bsky.social · 7d

Out today in PNAS: Mobile species' responses to surrounding land use generate trade-offs and synergies among nature's contributions to people" www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2505401122 by Sophie O'Brien et al.

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