👉 Interested in joining our #Bexplo Synthesis Team? Apply now – the deadline is October 25! 🔗 www.reassembly.de/the-team/job...

MicGeo team on the DBG conference 2025 in #Tübingen. Talk given by Nils Volles. Mechanisms of Methane Sink Recovery in Grasslands @zalf.bsky.social @dfg.de @bexplo.bsky.social #Methanotrophs

📢New BE-paper out on cost-effective #conservation of multiple goals in #grasslands. 🔗 doi.org/10.1016/j.bi... Permanent grasslands are key for #biodiversity but face rising threats. Traditional #conservation looked at species counts, but resilience, #ecosystem services & interactions matter too. 🌐

🌱 New paper highlights how #BExplo & #BioDivKultur advance grassland research through collaboration, interdisciplinarity & transdisciplinarity. Conserving #grasslands is a shared societal task - requiring long-term, inclusive efforts across #science, #policy & practice. 🌐 🔗 doi.org/10.1002/glr2...

🍄 How does land use shape the world of #fungi beneath our feet? 📣 New BE-study: #Land-use intensity (LUI) affects soil fungal communities – but #forests 🌳 show more resilient fungal diversity, while #grasslands 🌱 are more sensitive to management. 🔗 doi.org/10.1111/1462...

📢Save the Date!👩‍🔬 Join us in Berlin, June 8–12, 2026 for the #BE20 Conference: “Emerging Topics in Long-Term and Large-Scale Biodiversity Research” 🦋🌱🌳 📍 Langenbeck-Virchow-Haus, Berlin 🎉 Celebrating 20 years of the #Biodiversity Exploratories! Please RT and share this news! #Research #Conference

🌳Making forests accessible for all! With #Nationalpark Hainich we supported an inclusive field trip for students with and without mobility challenges. Thanks to rangers, volunteers & off-road wheelchairs (Joelette), everyone could experience the forest and its #biodiversity up close. 🌲♿ 📷 S. Pompe

First record of Thyreophagus corticalis deutonymphs phoretic on Ixodes ricinus in Germany (found in our exploratory Schwäbische Alb). Rare, geographically restricted occurrence; likely incidental contact at sites with established mite populations. 🔗Read more: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... 🌐

🎋 Mikado in the field? Not quite! In May, ~ 600 bamboo sticks were used as multiple #research projects investigated our experimental plots in the Hainich-Dün Exploratory. It may look like a game, but it's all about precise planning and coordination! 📷 S. Pompe, M. Rubenbauer #BExplo #Fieldwork

Chongyi's paper from the biodiversity exploratories (@bexplo.bsky.social‬) is finally out ! How do genomic traits interact with community ecology? Antropogenic havoc. Communities shake. Genomes grow and break. doi.org/10.1111/1365...

#Pollinators are essential for ecosystem functioning. 🐝🌼 This BE-study explores temporal stability of #land-use and climatic effects on morphological traits & abundance of the #bumblebee Bombus lapidarius and syrphid fly Episyrphus balteatus in agricultural #grasslands. 🌐 🔗 doi.org/10.1016/j.ba...

🔬🌿 Field research up close! Students from @uniulm.bsky.social and @unituebingen.bsky.social explored forest and grassland plots in the Explo Schwäbische Alb as part of their #biodiversity and #plant #ecology courses. Hands-on #science -insightful, practical, and inspiring! 📷 M. Müller #Fieldwork

🦇 What drives #bat diversity in #forests? 🌲 Gaps boost species richness & abundance. More #deadwood & understory = higher bat & feeding activity. Generalists thrive in gaps, specialists stay under canopy. Structural variety is key! Check out our latest BE paper for more: doi.org/10.1016/j.fo... 🌐

Interested in nocturnal #moths? ☑️ Check our new BE-Paper in @oikosjournal.bsky.social: #Land-use intensification reduced trait & phylogenetic beta #diversity - mainly in common moths. Rare #forest species responded differently. Body size ↓, wing load & darkness ↑. 🔗 doi.org/10.1002/oik.... 🌐

🌼 Spring flashback! Our team recorded 44 #plant species on 50 plots in the Hainich-Dün Exploratory. Featured: lesser celandine & wood anemone. 🌿 🙌 Shout-out to Christoph Zwahlen and the @unibe.ch #botany team for additionally spotting 47 species in Mülverstedt! 📷 S. Pompe #Biodiversity #bexplo

📢 New BE study: #Land-use intensity affects the species–area relationship only indirectly via reduced #plant species richness.🌱 #Mowing lowers, grazing raises spatial heterogeneity ➡️divergent effects of land-use components & the need to assess direct vs. indirect drivers. 🔗 doi.org/10.1016/j.ba...

Summer vibes in the forest. A look up into the canopy—pure calm. The forest is the perfect place to recharge and cool down in the hot summer month. 🌲 Where do you go to cool down?🌞❄️ 📷 C. Penone #bexplo #SummerInTheForest #Biodiversity #GetOutside

🔬 New BE study on the #grassland hyphosphere #microbiome: Substrate quality shapes microbial communities & N transfer. More N from arginine than root litter reaches #plant roots. Saprotrophic #fungi play a key role in litter processing & plant nutrition. 🔗 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

In June the project LandUseMultBEF had been working in the forest plots of Schorfheide-Chorin, collecting water-filled treeholes. Larvae were extracted from the samples, and a predation experiment was conducted to identify the macroinvertebrate predator species inhabiting these cavities. 📷 S. López

📢New paper from our FOX experiment on how #forest structure affects #carrion removal by #scavengers: Carrion vanishes fast in both gaps & closed forest, and removal rates are similar. But scavenger communities differ, suggesting functional redundancy.🦊🦅 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

📢 New paper on fine #root #biomass (FRB) in #forests! 🌳 FRB peaks in moist, fertile soils & drops in dry, poor ones. Yet roots in dry soils hold more nutrients & sugars—likely for drought response. Rainfall & management matter more for FRB than temperature. 🔗 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

New 📃 out, led by @LeahVogelfänger. While the ecology of saproxylic beetles is well studied, other invertebrates often come up short. Studying 15 taxa across 8 years, we found that—unlike for beetles—tree species mattered little for the communities of these diverse groups. 🌳 @bexplo.bsky.social

Postdoc Job offer for Arthropod Ecologists 🪲🕷️ Michael Staab @leuphana.bsky.social offers a 3 year postdoc starting in October latest. Arthropod diversity, interactions & functions in different research programs, e.g. @bexplo.bsky.social Apply by June 19th www.leuphana.de/en/universit...

📢BE-Paper online about #seedrain and how it's influenced by #land-use intensity (LUI)!🌱In our 142 #grassland plots, higher LUI increased seed density but redcued diversity. #Fertilization had negative effects; #mowing once/year helps, not at higher frequencies. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

📢 New data from the Biodiversity Exploratories! We've just added 173 datasets via BExIS, bringing the total to 1,722 publicly available. 🔍 These datasets and further resources are accessible for research, teaching, and more. 🌿📊 ➡️ Explore the data: www.bexis.uni-jena.de #Research #OpenData #BExIS

Our new paper is out to day in Nature Ecology and Evolution! It is called: Thresholds of functional trait diversity driven by land use intensification ⬇️ www.nature.com/articles/s41... #FunctionalTraits 🌐 ➕📏 @inrae-france.bsky.social @urep.bsky.social @cnrsecologie.bsky.social @bexplo.bsky.social

For over a year, the BE_BioMON project team has been regularly out in the grasslands, investigating how nitrogen is transformed in the soil and how this relates to biodiversity and land use. 📷 U. Schumacher #BiodiversityExploratories #BioMON #NitrogenCycle #SoilEcology #Fieldwork #Schorfheide

📢New BE-Paper out in @commsearth.nature.com: Mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) stability strongly depends on mineral type & #LandUse. Goethite more stable than illite; forests more stable than grasslands. Important for soil C storage. 🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s43... #SoilCarbon #Ecosystems

Spotted this striking mushroom cluster growing from an old tree burl in the Schorfheide forest. Likely a species that thrives on weakened or dead wood—nature wastes no niche. 🍄🌿 📍 Exploratory Schorfheide-Chorin 📷 M. Rubenbauer #ForestFinds #Biodiversity #Mushrooms #Schorfheide

Today we celebrate the incredible variety of life on Earth — from tiny soil microbes to majestic forests. Biodiversity is not just beautiful; it’s essential for clean air, fertile soil, and healthy ecosystems. 📷Ayushi, M.Erhardt, A-C.Wicht, J.Hailer, H.Winter, A.Parreno, H.Kellner, G.LeProvost

📢 New BE-Paper presents a novel approach to quantify energy channels of #soil detritivores and predators in temperate #forests. Results show #fungal #energy flow dominates across forest types/regions, while Chilopoda use more bacterial and plant resources. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

We've just completed the last sampling of our 15N experiment, part of @bexplo.bsky.social. Very grateful for the support received from the local management teams, students, and colleagues throughout more than a year of work! More on SOM-N and N cycling microbes in managed grasslands coming soon🤎

On May 10th, the Biodiversity Exploratories participated in the Night of the Museums at the Senckenberg Museum @sgn.one. Visitors explored biodiversity through interactive displays, including insect observations, a magnet game matching species to their habitats, highlighting land use impacts.

#Spring is showing its sunny side in the #Explo #Schorfheide. Bright yellow rapeseed fields, blue sky, and a quiet pond – sometimes that’s all you need to pause. Let the landscape do the rest. #SpringVibes #RapeseedFields #Brandenburg #NatureMoment #Outdoors 📷 M. Rubenbauer

📢New BE-Paper published ‼️

We, the local management teams of the Biodiversity Exploratories, explored agricultural research at the University of Göttingen! Exciting exchange on grasslands, livestock, and biodiversity. 🌱🐄 📷 J. Hailer, U. Schumacher

🌍 Happy #EarthDay! Today we celebrate our amazing planet and remind ourselves how important it is to protect it. Together, we can preserve Earth for future generations! 💚🌱 #ProtectOurPlanet #Sustainability #EarthDay2025

📢 New BE-publication out now – tackling a crucial topic: Microplastics and their impact on soil health! 💡 #Microplastics aren't just a water issue — they're affecting our #soils and ecosystems, too. Check it out!

📢 New BE-Paper📢 DNA metabarcoding reveals heterospecific pollen transfer in #grasslands across varying #land-use intensities.🌼🐝 🔹Lowest heterospecific #pollen diversity at intermediate plant richness 🔹Pollen transfer influenced by #plant community composition onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

🚀 The countdown is on! Only 2 days left until the @dfg.de deadline for proposals within the Biodiversity Exploratories. We wishing all applicants perseverance and, most importantly, success! 💪🍀 #DFG #Research www.dfg.de/de/aktuelles...

Biological & cultural diversity are closely linked in landscapes with a long land-use history. Emmeline Topp reports on our oral history approach that explores biocultural diversity in the German Biodiversity Exploratories. @bexplo.bsky.social. #PeopleNatureLandscapesBlog. medium.com/people-natur...

🚨 Complete genome reveal! 🚨 Meet Paraconexibacter strain AEG42_29—straight from the temperate #grassland #soil of the Schwäbische Alb Exploratory! 🦠 Its #genome packs genes for stress response, defense & virulence, helping it thrive in changing #soil conditions.🔬 journals.asm.org/doi/full/10....

Earlier this year, we collected 108 #wood slices from #deadwood logs placed on our FOX #forest plots four years ago. The slices were measured on-site and then transported for drying and further analysis. Despite the cold, carrying nearly 1 ton of wood kept us warm! 💪🔥 Huge thanks to all helpers! 🙌

🌿 Understanding how land use affects temporal #stability is key to preserve #biodiversity & #ecosystem functions. Our 13-year study across 300 sites reveals that trait-based #community features are key mediators of #land-use effects on stability drivers. @science.org www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

📃BE-study shows that the #plant #microbiome plays a crucial role in species persistence & #ecosystem stability! 🌱🦠 Lab experiments reveal that microbiomes from different land-use intensities shape distinct plant traits, highlighting their adaptive potential. academic.oup.com/ismej/articl...

📢NEW BE-PAPER: How bark #beetle infestations shape #fungal communities from soil to stem wood in different stages of infestation in Norway spruce!🌲 The study reveals cascading effects on #mycobiomes, highlighting the impact of tree dieback on the plant-soil system. academic.oup.com/femsec/artic...

Our Junior Scientists kicked off the BE-Assembly with a Young Scientists Get-Together 2025. A visit to Naturerlebniszentrum Hohne Hof (Harz National Park), a hike&networking in Wernigerode. And a workshop with Dr. Taiya Mikisch on mental health, stress management&resilience in academia. 📷 S.Peter

We are very happy to have you as one of our Advisory members and that you join us in #Wernigerode every year at our #BEassembly2025.

Currently 160 Explorers are meeting for the 22nd Assembly in snowy Werninerode ⛄ A week filled with exciting talks, insightfull posters, lots of interactions and a beautiful walk in the snow. ##BEassembly2025 #Biodiversityexploratories #forest #grassland #snow

New paper about how effects of #land-use intensity on community stability are mediated by #functional traits in managed #grasslands and #forest. Based on lots of field data on both #plants and #arthropods 🌱🌳🦋🐞🕷️📈 #insects #ecology @bexplo.bsky.social www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...