Biodiversity Masters Projects


1	General Field	Project Title or General Research Topics	Post Date	Contact	Host Institute	Link to Further Details	Notes
2	Amphibian conservation biology	Topics in amphibian population ecology and conservation biology	13/01/2023	Benedikt Schmidt <benedikt.schmidt@ieu.uzh.ch>	DEBES / UZH	www.popecol.org/join-us
3	Quantitative wildlife ecology	Modeling presence-only count data using a zero-truncated N-mixture model	13/01/2023	Marc Kery <marc.kery@vogelwarte.ch>	Vogelwarte		Opportunistic count data often lack zeros and that's a problem!
4	Light pollution, insect community ecology, insect traits	Artificial light at night I: mitigating an extreme environmental disturbance for humans and the environment (ALANeX)	16/01/2023	Janine Bolliger <janine.bolliger@wsl.ch>, www.wsl.ch/de/mitarbeitende/bolliger	WSL & DEBES / UZH	https://www.wsl.ch/de/projekte/alanex.html	You sort already collected insects into taxonomic groups. You analyze the insect’s abundances and traits of Lepidopterans and Coleopterans as a function of various light treatments
5	Light pollution, insect community ecology, landscape ecology	Artificial light at night II: mitigating an extreme environmental disturbance for humans and the environment (ALANeX)	16/01/2023	Janine Bolliger <janine.bolliger@wsl.ch>, www.wsl.ch/de/mitarbeitende/bolliger	WSL & DEBES / UZH	https://www.wsl.ch/de/projekte/alanex.html	You collect arthropods in the field and conduct a range of “walk or flight-to-light” experiments in the lab (different light treatments)
6	Environmental DNA	Modelling transport of environmental DNA in river networks	16/01/2023	Luca Carraro <luca.carraro@eawag.ch>, Florian Altermatt <florian.altermatt@ieu.uzh.ch>	Eawag & DEBES / UZH	https://www.altermattlab.ch/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Carraro_MSc_projects_eDNA.pdf
7	Ecological modelling	Synchrony and persistence of populations in river networks	16/01/2023	Luca Carraro <luca.carraro@eawag.ch>, Florian Altermatt <florian.altermatt@ieu.uzh.ch>	Eawag & DEBES / UZH	https://www.altermattlab.ch/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Carraro_MSc_projects_metapop.pdf
8	Community ecology	Unraveling community structure of aquatic insects in a river catchment	16/01/2023	Luca Carraro <luca.carraro@eawag.ch>, Florian Altermatt <florian.altermatt@ieu.uzh.ch>	Eawag & DEBES / UZH	https://www.altermattlab.ch/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Carraro_MSc_projects_Necker.pdf
9	Ecosystem functioning	How much leafs do the amphipods shred? Leaf litter decomposition experiments using amphipods as study organism.	16/01/2023	Roman Alther <roman.alther@eawag.ch>, Florian Altermatt <florian.altermatt@ieu.uzh.ch>	Eawag & DEBES / UZH	https://www.altermattlab.ch/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/MScProject_AmphipodCH1_20220901.pdf
10	Community ecology	Lake tributaries as safe haven? Long-term temporal patterns of amphipod communities in tributaries of Lake Constance.	16/01/2023	Roman Alther <roman.alther@eawag.ch>, Florian Altermatt <florian.altermatt@ieu.uzh.ch>	Eawag & DEBES / UZH	https://www.altermattlab.ch/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/MScProject_AmphipodCH2_20220901.pdf
11	Metaecosystem Ecology	Understanding meta-ecosystem dynamics using protist microcosm experiments	16/01/2023	Tianna Peller <tianna.peller@uzh.ch>, Florian Altermatt <florian.altermatt@ieu.uzh.ch>	Eawag & DEBES / UZH	https://www.altermattlab.ch/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/MScProject_Metaecosystems_Lab_2022.pdf
12	Metaecosystem Ecology	Integrating realistic landscape features into meta-ecosystem theory	16/01/2023	Tianna Peller <tianna.peller@uzh.ch>, Florian Altermatt <florian.altermatt@ieu.uzh.ch>	Eawag & DEBES / UZH	https://www.altermattlab.ch/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/MScProject_Metaecosystems_Theory_2022.pdf
13	Environmental DNA	Explore unknown groundwater biodiversity using environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding	16/01/2023	Marjorie Couton <marjorie.couton@eawag.ch>, Florian Altermatt <florian.altermatt@ieu.uzh.ch>	Eawag & DEBES / UZH	https://www.altermattlab.ch/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/MSc_Project_eDNA_groundwater.pdf
14	Evolutionary community ecology	Adaptation to multiple stressors	17/01/2023	Romana Limberger <romana.limberger@ieu.uzh.ch>	DEBES / UZH	https://www.ieu.uzh.ch/en/teaching/masterprojects.html	Please find project description at the external link under the header "Adaptation to multiple stressors"
15	Thermal ecology, climate change, insects	Reduced fertility under heat stress: What are the downstream consequences?	18/01/2023	Stefan Lüpold <stefan.luepold@ieu.uzh.ch>, Abhishek Meena <abhishek.meena@uzh.ch>	DEBES / UZH	http://www.lupoldlab.net/join.html
16	Evolutionary ecology, behavioral ecology	Thermal ecology, ecotoxicology, evolution, reproduction	18/01/2023	Stefan Lüpold <stefan.luepold@ieu.uzh.ch>	DEBES / UZH	http://www.lupoldlab.net/join.html	We are always open to discussing your own project ideas. Please don't hesitate to contact us.
17	Microbiome, environment, insects	Assessing host-microbiome interactions in different environmental contexts	18/01/2023	Stefan Lüpold <stefan.luepold@ieu.uzh.ch>	DEBES / UZH	http://www.lupoldlab.net/join.html	Experimental work, can involve any environmental stressor and different phenotypic responses
18	Behavioural ecology, population ecology	Has timing of breeding changed as temperatures have risen in the last two decades? A long term breeding study of a native small mammal	25/01/2023	Anna Lindholm anna.lindholm@ieu.uzh.ch	DEBES /UZH	https://www.ieu.uzh.ch/en/staff/member/lindholm_anna.html	Field work in Kanton Zurich
19	Community ecology	Change of food-web structure and food-chain length in response to ecosystem engineering by beavers	25/01/2023	Anita Risch <anita.risch@wsl.ch>, Valentin Moser <valentin.moser@wsl.ch>	WSL	https://www.wsl.ch/de/ueber-die-wsl/organisation/programme-und-initiativen/forschungsinitiative-blue-green-biodiversity/species-interactions-in-beaver-engineered-habitats-link-land-water-ecosystem-processes.html	We also also other possibilities in our beaver ecosystem project with different aspects of biodiversity, conservation and community biology
20	Population ecology	Demographic analysis of the Cape ground squirrel	25/01/2023	Arpat Ozgul <arpat.ozgul@uzh.ch>	DEBES / UZH	www.popecol.org/join-us	Demographic analysis of long-term data
21	Tree ecology	Extraction of phenotypic traits from virtual 3D assemblies of beech tree seedlings	25/01/2023	sofia.vanmoorsel@geo.uzh.ch	Geography / UZH	https://sofiavanmoorsel.com/en	We are looking for a student who is interested in photogrammetry and excited to develop new protocols and procedures to accurately phenotype beech saplings.
22	Population ecology	Adaptation to global change drivers in a commercially important aquatic plant	25/01/2023	sofia.vanmoorsel@geo.uzh.ch	Geography / UZH	https://sofiavanmoorsel.com/en	Follow the external link for more detailed information.
23	Community ecology, landscape ecology, biodiversity research	Projects on patterns, drivers, and mitigation measures of agro-biodiversity	01/02/2023	Eva Knop eva.knop@ieu.uzh.ch	Agroscope / UZH	www.knoplab.ch	Depending on the project you will conduct experiments or biodiversity surveys in different parts of Switzerland. Ideally you have a driver's licence, but it is not required. For more details please visit www.knoplab.ch or send me an E-mail.
24	Metaecosystem Ecology	Investigating interactions between ecosystems through the flow of non-living material	02/02/2023	Emanuele Giacomuzzo <emanuele.giacomuzzo@eawag.ch>, Florian Altermatt <florian.altermatt@ieu.uzh.ch>	Eawag & DEBES / UZH	https://www.altermattlab.ch/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/MScProject_Metaecosystems_Lab_2023.pdf
25	Conservation biology	Demography of population persistence in newly created ponds	10/02/2023	Benedikt Schmidt <benedikt.schmidt@ieu.uzh.ch>	DEBES / UZH & info fauna karch	https://www.popecol.org/join-us/
26	Environmental Humanities	Place and role of microbes in human society	02/03/2023	env.humanities@gmail.com	DEBES / UZH	https://environmentalhumanities.ch/
27	Environmental History	Background and understanding of rewilding, restoring, renaturing	02/03/2023	marc.hall@ieu.uzh.ch	DEBES / UZH	https://www.ieu.uzh.ch/en/research/ecology/history.html
28	History of Biology	History and control of vector-borne diseases	02/03/2023	marc.hall@ieu.uzh.ch	DEBES / UZH	https://www.ieu.uzh.ch/en/research/ecology/history.html
29	Environmental DNA	Unraveling the effects of local and landscape factors on arthropod communities on green roofs using environmental DNA metabarcoding	10/03/2023	Kilian Perrelet <kilian.perrelet@eawag.ch>, Florian Altermatt <florian.altermatt@ieu.uzh.ch>	Eawag & DEBES / UZH	https://www.altermattlab.ch/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/MastersProject_KP_100323.pdf
30	Community ecology	Consequences of artificial light at night for dung communities and decomposition	16/05/2023	Frank Pennekamp <frank.pennekamp@ieu.uzh.ch>	DEBES, Agroscope	https://drive.switch.ch/index.php/s/IhEhXJS7XTLiHli	Driver's licence recommended
31	Community ecology	From individual movement behaviour to the stability of consumer-resource interactions	16/05/2023	Frank Pennekamp <frank.pennekamp@ieu.uzh.ch>	DEBES / WSL	https://drive.switch.ch/index.php/s/hOYLuO95OKf4yee
32	Conservation Genetics	Developing a protocol for an effective non-invasive sampling and DNA extraction in two Alpine herbivores: Alpine ibex and Mountain hare	18/07/2023	alice.brambilla@uzh.ch, christine.grossen@wsl.ch, iris.biebach@uzh.ch	DEBES/UZH		fieldwork in Alpine areas possible (not mandatory)
33	Ecology, stress physiology	Does artificial light at night affect stress hormone secretion of barn owls (Tyto alba)?	08/09/2023	Bettina Almasi <bettina.almasi@vogelwarte.ch>	Swiss Ornithological Institute	https://www.vogelwarte.ch/de/vogelwarte/mitarbeit/thesis/msc/sd/does-artificial-light-at-night-affect-stress-hormone-secretion-of-barn-owls-(tyto-alba)	Please find project description at the external link; Fieldwork in Western Switzerland, driver's licence required
34	Behavioural ecology	Testing for general intelligence in wild great tits (Parus major)	08/09/2023	Pierre Bize <pierre.bize@vogelwarte.ch>	Swiss Ornithological Institute
35	Ecology; Ecophysiology	Effects of extreme weather events on nestling growth and survival in the Alpine swift (Tachymarptis melba)	08/09/2023	Pierre Bize < pierre.bize@vogelwarte.ch> ; Giulia Masoero < giulia.masoero@vogelwarte.ch>	Swiss Ornithological Institute	https://www.vogelwarte.ch/de/vogelwarte/mitarbeit/thesis/msc/sd/effects-of-extreme-weather-events-on-nestling-growth-and-survival-in-the-alpine-swift-(tachymarptis-melba)	Fieldwork in several Swiss cities
36	Ecology, Ecophysiology	Exposure to plastic and their consequences in the European dipper (Cinclus cinclus)	08/09/2023	Pierre Bize <pierre.bize@vogelwarte.ch>	Swiss Ornitholgical Institute	https://www.vogelwarte.ch/de/vogelwarte/mitarbeit/thesis/msc/sd/exposure-to-plastic-and-their-consequences-in-the-european-dipper	Fieldwork in France
37	Light pollution and ecology	Does artificial light at night affect food provisioning behaviour and stress levels of breeding barn owls (Tyto alba)?	08/09/2023	Bettina Almasi <bettina.almasi@vogelwarte.ch>; Anne-Caroline Heintz <anne-caroline.heintz@vogelwarte.ch>	Swiss Ornithological Institute	https://www.vogelwarte.ch/de/vogelwarte/mitarbeit/thesis/msc/sd/does-artificial-light-at-night-affect-stress-hormone-secretion-of-barn-owls-(tyto-alba)	Please find project description at the external link; Fieldwork in Western Switzerland, driver's licence required
38	Behavioural Ecology	Using AI to recognise individuals and estimate population sizes in an endangered parrot, the gang-gang cockatoo	25/09/2023	lucy.aplin@uzh.ch	UZH	https://sites.google.com/site/lucymaplin/home	Fieldwork in Canberra, Australia
39	Community ecology, global change research, pollination ecology	Indirect consequences of light pollution on diurnal plant-pollinator interactions	04/10/2023	eva.knop@ieu.uzh.ch; vincent.grognuz@agroscope.admin.ch	Agroscope / UZH	www.knoplab.ch	Field or lab experiments in the surroundings of Zurich
40	Community ecology, landscape ecology, biodiversity research, land-use change	Change of alpine plant and grasshopper communities	04/10/2023	eva.knop@ieu.uzh.ch; marco.barandun@agroscope.admin.ch	Agroscope / UZH	www.knoplab.ch	Fieldwork in alpine grasslands of Switzerland, driver's licence required
41	Community ecology, landscape ecology, pollination ecology, climate change	Impact of climate change on pollinators and pollination service	04/10/2023	Sibylle Stöckli (sibylle.stockli@unige.ch); Eva Knop (eva.knop@ieu.uzh.ch)	Agroscope / UZH	www.knoplab.ch	Experience in modelling
42	Community ecology, global change ecology, biodiversity research	Projects on causes and consequences of changes of insect occurrences	09/10/2023	Felix Neff <felix.neff@agroscope.admin.ch>; Eva Knop <eva.knop@ieu.uzh.ch>	Agroscope / UZH	www.knoplab.ch	Field and/or lab experiments. For more details please visit www.knoplab.ch or send us an E-mail.
43	Soil biology	Soil health in Swiss agroforestry systems	27/10/2023	camille.rubeaud@agroscope.admin.ch	Agroscope	https://www.agroscope.admin.ch/agroscope/de/home/ueber-uns/stellenangebote/themen-master-bachelorarbeiten.html	Driver's licence is required
44	Population ecology, widlife management	Population modelling to improve decisions making in wildlife management of hunted species	11/12/2023	Benedikt Gehr <benedikt.gehr@ieu.uzh.ch	DEBES / UZH	it@ieu.uzh.ch
45	Population ecology	Demographic analysis of the snow voles in response to climate change	16/04/2024	Arpat Ozgul <arpat.ozgul@uzh.ch>	DEBES / UZH	www.popecol.org/join-us	Demographic analysis of long-term data