We are please to announce May's Wageningen Evolution and Ecology Seminar (WEES) event! 

The Seminar will take place on Friday 24th of May, 13:00-14:00 in Orion, B4044 & B4045. This will be followed by a gathering at the Spot. 

The associated Workshop will take place from 10:00 -  11:30 in OrionB4042. The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the seminar’s speaker and have a discussion about a hot topic in science. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops. Registration is required for this workshop and you can sign up by emailing Lydia Cornu (lydia.cornu@wur.nl).

You are also welcome to join the speaker for dinner in Wageningen on Thursday May 23rd, or lunch on campus on Friday May 24th (this will be at your own expense). If you are interested, please email Lydia Cornu (lydia.cornu@wur.nl). 

Please feel free to forward this information to anyone who could be interested!

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Seminar: Microclimate Change: The Hidden driver of species redistribution 

Friday, May 24th 2024, 13:00 - 14:00, Orion B4044 + B4045

Dr. Jonas Lembrechts

Assistant Professor in Ecological Scaling

Utrecht University, The Netherlands

Recent research has shown that the impacts of climate change on terrestrial species distributions are more complex than expected. Species distributions are showing significant delays in responses, or have shifted in unexpected directions. Scientists have identified several mechanisms that could explain these mismatches, including slow population dynamics, habitat fragmentation, and biotic interactions that limit the spread of species. Yet, one crucial aspect remains largely overlooked: we first need relevant high-resolution baseline climate change data to accurately answer this question.

Indeed, organisms respond to microclimate change, which can differ significantly from macroclimate change. We know that local temperatures near the ground or below vegetation can be several degrees different from weather station data. However, it remains a mystery how quickly these microclimates are changing, as this depends as much on climate change as on land use changes.

In this talk, we will explore how the SoilTemp-database, a global database of more than 100,000 in-situ measured microclimate time series, can be used to improve global microclimate products and ultimately provide better estimates of microclimate change. By applying these products to improve our ecological models, from species distributions over disease prediction to decomposition, we can better understand the impacts of climate change on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, crucial for adjusting biodiversity management to a rapidly changing world.

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Workshop: Tips and tricks to optimize your own local microclimate or environmental monitoring

Friday, May 24th 2024, 10:00 - 11:30, Orion B4042

Effective microclimate monitoring requires putting microclimate on the forefront. Up till now, many on-the-ground observations are still an afterthought of more 'important' ecological questions, and such ad-hoc sensor deployments may fail to capture the environmental heterogeneity one is interested in. In this workshop, Dr. Lembrechts will summarize the recent (unpublished) efforts by the SoilTemp-network to create standardized - yet flexible - workflows to design microclimate networks, targeting academic and applied ecologists interested in biodiversity conservation, natural resource management, and climate adaptation.

 Drawing on years of experience with networks from across the globe (from a 5000-strong citizen science network in Flanders to a nation-wide network in Oman or local networks on a remote sub-Antarctic island), the workshop covers everything from location and sensor selection, over spatiotemporal resolution to the practicalities of sensor deployment in the field and in pots, and stakeholder engagement. By addressing these known and unknown challenges in sensor deployment, this workshop aims to enhance the utility and robustness of microclimate (and other environmental) monitoring efforts.

There will be plenty of room for discussing particular case studies, questions and issues as experienced by the participants, working towards practical solutions to optimize your own microclimate data collection.

Dear all,

We would like to invite you to attend March’s Wageningen Evolution & Ecology Seminar (WEES) and Workshop.

The seminar will take place on Thursday 21st March, 16.00-17.00 in C1005 in Orion. This will be followed by drinks at The Spot and the opportunity to have dinner (at your own expense) with the speaker. Sign up for dinner with Ruth Fawthrop (r.fawthrop@nioo.knaw.nl).

The associated workshop will be from 14.00-15.30 in B4014 in Orion. The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the seminar’s speaker and have a discussion about a hot topic in science. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops. Registration is required for this workshop and you can sign up by emailing Ruth Fawthrop (r.fawthrop@nioo.knaw.nl).

This will be a great event so please forward this information to anyone who could be interested!

Seminar: Mate choice, extra-pair paternity and social networks (16.00h in C1005, Orion)

Dr. Julia Schroeder

Senior Lecturer

Imperial College London, UK

Female mate choice is one of the hallmarks of sexual selection. Driven by anisogamy, females are predicted to be the choosier sex, selecting her mates by aiming to maximise the quality of her offspring, while males are predicted to favour quantity over quality. Extra-pair paternity in socially monogamous song birds is a model system where this female choice is put under magnification: females exchange the genetic contribution of the father, but the rest stays the same. This system allows us to test several predictions from sexual selection and beyond. Here I will explore the classical sexual selection hypotheses (good genes, sexy sons), more recent suggestions (pleiotropy hypotheses) and the roles of ageing, opportunity and connectedness in mate choice. I will present data from 25 years of research in our island system of house sparrows.

Workshop: Time management and life-work balance in academia (14.00h in B4014, Orion)

In this workshop we will explore the ongoing issues academics face surrounding time management and life-work balance. We will consider how we define personal productivity and how ecologists and evolutionary biologists can consider their own time management practices.

As an introduction to the workshop, attendees are encouraged to read the following article: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00648-x

About WEES

WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS. 

Want to organize seminars yourself? Join WEES!

WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings. 

For more information please visit www.weeswageningen.nl and follow us on twitter @weeswageningen

Dear all,

We would like to invite you to attend December’s Wageningen Evolution & Ecology Seminar (WEES) and afternoon workshop. The seminar will take place on Tuesday 12th December, 16:00-17:00h in Orion C2035, where Dr. Djordje Bajić from TU Delft Section of Industrial Microbiology will present his work on “Using fitness landscapes to engineer microbial communities”.

There will also be a workshop with Dr. Bajić on “An introduction to fitness landscapes” at 14:00 in Orion B3042. In the workshop, Dr. Bajić will discuss the concept of fitness landscapes. We will start by reviewing the history of fitness landscapes and its uses. He will then deepen a bit more into the concept of global epistasis. The workshop is aimed for HBO, MSc, PhD students, and postdocs. Registration is required, so please email Alanna Leale (alanna.leale@wur.nl) to register. See below for more information.

Please forward this information to anyone who could be interested. Thank you!

Using fitness landscapes to engineer microbial communities

(16:00 - Orion C2035)

Dr. Djordje Bajić

Assistant Professor, Industrial Microbiology

Department of Biotechnology

TU Delft

Microbial communities hold great promise as sustainable alternative in many biotechnological, agricultural and environmental applications. However, the functions and services that microbial communities provide depend on an intricate network of interactions between species and their environment. This makes engineering microbial communities a remarkably challenging task. One of the main interests of my group is to address this challenge by developing predictive models that link the composition of a community to its function. In this seminar, I will start by extending the concept of fitness landscapes to explore maps between microbial community composition and function. Then, I will discuss some exciting recent developments in which we leveraged this approach for engineering microbial communities.

Workshop (14:00 Orion B3042)

Using fitness landscapes to engineer microbial communities

In the workshop, I will discuss the concept of fitness landscapes. We will start by reviewing the history of fitness landscapes and its uses. I will then deepen a bit more into the concept of global epistasis. A suggested (but not mandatory) reading is our recent review on the topic, which is freely available here https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rstb.2022.0053.

The workshop will take place 14:00 to 15:30 in Orion B3042. Registration is required, so please email Alanna Leale (alanna.leale@wur.nl) to register. The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the speaker of the seminar and have a discussion based on recent publications. The workshops are a good possibility to become acquainted with hot topics in science and to gain experience in discussing these topics with leading scientists in the field. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops.

Lunch & dinner with Dr. Bajić:

A small group will have lunch and dinner with our invited speaker. If you are interested in joining for lunch and/or dinner with Dr. Bajić, please contact Alanna Leale (alanna.leale@wur.nl). You may of course also simply decide to join on the day of the seminar.

WEES background & call for new members:

WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS.

Interested in joining the WEES committee and organizing seminars yourself? WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings. For more information please visit: www.weeswageningen.nl or follow us on Twitter @weeswageningen

We would like to invite everyone to attend February's Wageningen Evolution & Ecology Seminar (WEES). The seminar will take place on Thursday 15th February, 16:00-17:00 in Orion C1005, where Prof. Martin Reichard from the Czech Academy of Sciences will present his work on the ‘Evolution of brood parasitism in the cuckoo catfish'. There will also be a workshop with Prof. Martin Reichard on ‘Interspecific reproductive parasitism in fishes' at 14:00 in Orion B3034. The workshop is aimed for HBO, PhD, MSc, BSc students, and postdocs. Registration is required, so please email Davide Bottacini (davide.bottacini@wur.nl) to register. See below for more information on the seminar and workshop. After the seminar, WEES invites the participants to join the speaker for free drinks at the Spot. On the day of the event, Prof. Reichard is also available for lunch and dinner with anyone who wants to join.

  Please forward this information to anyone who could be interested.

Seminar (16:00-17:00 - Orion C1005)

Evolution of brood parasitism in the cuckoo catfish Prof. Martin Reichard Professor at the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Biology   

Interspecific brood parasitism is a reproductive strategy whereby biological parents allocate their parental duties to a different species. I will address various aspects of ecology and evolution of brood parasitism in fishes, with special focus on the cuckoo catfish (Synodontis multipunctatus), a brood parasite of mouth-brooding cichlids in the African Lake Tanganyika. I will use a comparative approach to demonstrate how (dis)similar the cuckoo catfish is compared to other Synodontis catfishes in Lake Tanganyika and what this means for the origin of brood parasitism. I will then compare the role of coevolution and learning on the success of cichlid hosts to avoid parasitism by cuckoo catfish and also explain how cuckoo catfish learn to parasitize more effectively as they gain experience. I also address the potential for and constraints on host specialization and research into the origins of this reproductive strategy, using a combination of data collected in the field and laboratory experiments. 

Workshop (14:00-15:30 - Orion B3034)

Interspecific reproductive parasitism in fishes

The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the speaker and have a discussion based on recent publications. The workshops are a good opportunity to become acquainted with hot topics in science and to gain experience in discussing these topics with leading scientists in the field. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops. Registration is required to participate in the workshop, so please email Davide Bottacini (davide.bottacini@wur.nl) to register. 

Lunch and dinner with Prof. Martin Reichard A small group will have lunch and dinner with our invited speaker. If you are interested in joining for lunch and/or dinner with Prof. Martin Reichard, please contact Davide Bottacini (davide.bottacini@wur.nl). You may of course also simply decide to join on the day of the seminar. Please, note that participants are expected to cover the costs of lunch and dinner themselves.

WEES background & call for new membersWEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS.

Interested in joining the WEES committee and organizing seminars yourself? WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings.

Dear all,

We would like to invite you to attend January’s Wageningen Evolution & Ecology Seminar (WEES) and related workshop. The seminar will take place on Thursday 18th January, 16:00-17:00 in Orion C1005. Dr. Theresa Rueger from Newcastle University will present her work on ‘Coral reef fishes as a model to understand animal societies'. 

  There will also be a workshop with Dr. Theresa Rueger on ‘Marine fishes as models in behavioural ecology' at 14:00 in Orion B4015. In the workshop, Dr. Rueger will discuss the role of coral reef fishes as models in behavioural ecology. The workshop is aimed for HBO, MSc, PhD students, and postdocs. Registration is required, so please email Davide Bottacini (davide.bottacini@wur.nl) to register. See below for more information on the seminar and workshop. 

In preparation to the seminar and workshop, the speaker recommends the papers in attachment, which offer a background on the topics discussed.   Please forward this information to anyone who could be interested. Thank you!  

Seminar (16:00-17:00 - Orion C1005)

Coral reef fishes as a model to understand animal societies

  Dr. Theresa Rueger Lecturer, Tropical Marine Biology Newcastle University, UK   The evolution of complex groups, where some individuals reproduce and others do not, remains an evolutionary mystery for many animal species, including marine fishes. Anemonefishes and gobies, model organisms for the ecology and evolution of marine organisms, live in complex groups with two dominant breeders and several non-breeding subordinates. We know why subordinates accept their situation: limited habitat availability and high predation rate associated with movement between groups create harsh ecological constraints; and strict size hierarchies and the threat of eviction create harsh social constraints. However, we do not know why dominant breeders accept subordinates to share their resources. We tested several classic hypotheses to explain social evolution in coral reef fishes: 1) The kin selection hypothesis; 2) the mate-replacement hypothesis and 3) the pay-to-stay hypothesis. We used genetics, experiments and behavioural observations on anemonefish and goby populations in Papua New Guinea. We found that 1) surprisingly, despite a larval dispersal phase, relatedness in groups of coral reef fishes can be significantly higher than the population mean; 2) the variance, but not the mean, of time to replace a mate is reduced when subordinates are present; and 3) subordinates perform helping behaviours beneficial to the dominants, often mediated by their anemone or coral mutualistic hosts. None of these factors alone can explain the formation and maintenance of groups in coral reef fishes, but added together a clear picture emerges of why dominant breeders accept subordinates to form complex societies. 

Workshop (14:00-15:30 - Orion B4015)

Marine fishes as models in behavioural ecology  

The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the speaker and have a discussion based on recent publications. The workshops are a good possibility to become acquainted with hot topics in science and to gain experience in discussing these topics with leading scientists in the field. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops. Registration is required to participate in the workshop, so please email Davide Bottacini (davide.bottacini@wur.nl) to register.   

Lunch and dinner with Dr. Rueger

A small group will have lunch and dinner with our invited speaker. If you are interested in joining for lunch and/or dinner with Dr. Rueger, please contact Davide Bottacini (davide.bottacini@wur.nl). You may of course also simply decide to join for dinner on the day of the seminar.  

WEES background & call for new members WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS.  

Interested in joining the WEES committee and organizing seminars yourself? WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings.

  For more information please visit: www.weeswageningen.nl or follow us on Twitter @weeswageningen

October's WEES seminar by dr. Tim Newbold

Dear All,

We would like to invite you to attend October’s Wageningen Evolution and Ecology Seminar (WEES) and Workshop in-person!

The Seminar will take place on Tuesday 17th October, from 16:00 to 17:00 in Orion, C3033. This will be followed by drinks at The Spot and an opportunity to meet and have dinner with the Speaker (sign up for diner with Maxence – maxence.longuemare@wur.nl).

The associated Workshop will take place in Orion B4015 from 14:00 to 15:30. The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the seminar’s speaker and discuss about a hot topic both in science and for society. Registration is required for the Workshop, and you can sign up by emailing Maxence – maxence.longuemare@wur.nl

This will be a great event so please forward this information to anyone who could be interested!

______________________________________________________________

Seminar: The reshaping of ecological communities globally under land-use change and climate change (October 17th 2023, 16h-17h in Orion, C3033)

Dr. Tim Newbold

Principal Research Fellow

Genetics, Evolution & Environment

University College London, United Kingdom

Biodiversity is changing rapidly under the influence of human actions. Until now, land-use change has been the predominant driver of biodiversity change, but the impact of climate change is now clear and accelerating. Using global biodiversity data and models, my research seeks to understand how land-use change, climate change and their interactions are restructuring ecological communities worldwide. I also explore which types of species are benefiting and losing from land-use and climate changes, and what this means for human societies because of changes in pollinator biodiversity.

Workshop: The role of biodiversity scientists in tackling biodiversity changes (October 17th 2023, 14h-15h30 in Orion, B4015)

In this workshop, Dr. Tim Newbold will lead an engaging and dynamic discussion about the integral roles that biodiversity scientists play in tackling biodiversity changes. This can cover a wide range of topics, including strategies for enhancing the quality of evidence regarding biodiversity decline and its underlying factors, solutions to tackle biodiversity loss, methods for effectively communicating with government policymakers, businesses, as well as approaches to actively engage with civil society, including through activism.

In preparation, attendees are asked to read the following two articles that will be discussed during the workshop:

______________________________________________________________

About WEES

WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS.

Want to organise seminars yourself? Join WEES!

WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings.

For more information, please visit www.weeswageningen.nl and follow us on twitter @weeswageningen

Dear All,

We would like to invite you to attend September’s Wageningen Evolution and Ecology Seminar (WEES) and Masterclass in-person!

The Seminar will take place on Thursday 28th September, 16:00-17:00 in Orion, B4044. This will be followed by drinks at The Spot and an opportunity to meet and have dinner with the Speaker (sign up for dinner with Suraj – suraj.hm@wur.nl).

The associated Masterclass will be from 13:00-15:15 in the Room Decision, Impulse. The masterclass provides a platform for insightful discussions and knowledge sharing. Dr. Aaron Vogan will have an engaging presentation, about his personal journey from PhD to team leadership and his experience coordinating multifaceted projects. Followed by a dynamic session where 6-7 PhD’s/Post-doc’s will have an opportunity to present their work, (mainly relating to genomics) for 4 minutes each, followed by a 10-minute interactive discussion involving the presenting students, and the audience, which will also include PI's who are interested to be part of the discussion. Registration is required for the Masterclass and you can sign up by emailing Suraj – suraj.hm@wur.nl

This will be a great event so please forward this information to anyone who could be interested!

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Seminar: Voyage of the Starships: Horizontal gene transfer of giant transposons drives adaptation across fungi (September 28th 2023, 16.00h in Orion, B4044)

Dr. Aaron Vogan

Independent Researcher,

Institute of Organismal Biology,

Uppsala University, Sweden

Transposable elements in eukaryotic organisms are often regarded as “selfish,” typically providing only indirect benefits to their host organisms. A novel discovery in fungal genomes is the presence of Starships, which display characteristics of transposable elements and are believed to confer advantageous traits to their hosts at certain instances. During the seminar, Dr. Aaron will delve into the subject of Starships exploring their involvement in mobilizing into specific genomic sites and their role in multiple recent instances of horizontal gene transfers.

About WEES

WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS. 

Want to organise seminars yourself? Join WEES!

WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings. 

For more information please visit www.weeswageningen.n and follow us on twitter @weeswageningen

Dear all,  

With this email, we would like to invite you to attend May’s Wageningen Evolution & Ecology Seminar (WEES) and Workshop in-person!  

The seminar will take place on Monday 12th June, 16.00-17.00 in Orion, C2030. This will be followed by drinks at The Spot and the opportunity to have dinner with the speaker (sign up for dinner with Liana Greenberg – liana.greenberg@wur.nl).  

The associated workshop will be from 14.00-15.30 in Orion, B4015. The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the seminar’s speaker and have a discussion about a hot topic in science. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops. Registration is required for this workshop and you can sign up by emailing Liana Greenbrg (liana.greenberg@wur.nl).  

This will be a great event so please forward this information to anyone who could be interested! ______________________________________________________

 Seminar: Beetle perspectives on eating cabbage: how multitrophic interactions have shaped flea beetle adaptations to glucosinolates (16.00h in Orion, C2030)

Dr. Franziska Beran

Project manager, Department of Insect Symbiosis

Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany  

Most herbivorous insect species are specialists that feed on only a small number of plant species. These food preferences are strongly influenced by plant defense compounds to which insects have adapted. Insects employ remarkably diverse strategies to cope with plant defense compounds, ranging from enzymatic breakdown to sequestration, the accumulation of plant toxins for protection from natural enemies. Our goal is to understand the impact of functionally different adaptations to plant defense compounds on the ecology and evolution of herbivorous insects. Therefore, we focus on two closely related genera of flea beetles that have independently from each other specialized on brassicaceous plant and either detoxify or sequester glucosinolates, the characteristic defense compounds of Brassicaceae. By combining metabolomic and transcriptomic approaches with functional and phylogenetic studies, we investigate the molecular basis and evolution of flea beetle adaptations to glucosinolates. Our results reveal how plants and natural enemies have shaped the adaptive strategies of flea beetles and provide insights into factors contributing to the evolutionary success of these insects. I will also discuss the implications of our findings for the development of sustainable pest control strategies.  

Workshop: Plant secondary metabolites and the evolution of insect-plant interaction (14.00h in Orion, B4015)

Insect-plant associations are often regarded as the result of a coevolutionary arms race that has been driven by the diversification plant defense compounds and corresponding insect counteradaptations. In this workshop we will take advantage of a classical model system in this field, the interaction between Pieridae butterflies and their Brassicales host plants to discuss the concept of coevolution and the possible role of insect adaptations to plant defense compounds as evolutionary key innovations. ________________________________________________________

About WEES

WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS.  

Want to organize seminars yourself? Join WEES!

WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings.  

For more information please visit www.weeswageningen.nl and follow us on twitter @weeswageningen  

Seminar: Climate, nutrients, and herbivores shape Earth’s grasslands, but can kangaroos, kudus, and cows keep up on our changing planet? (16.00h in Orion, C2035)  

Prof. Elizabeth Borer

Professor of Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour

University of Minnesota

Changing climate poses such existential challenges that we often equate global change with climate change. But while predicting and mitigating climate change impacts is critically important, climate is only one of many ongoing global changes shaping the ecology of current and future Earth. In less than a century, human activities have more than doubled the amount of reactive nitrogen supplied to Earth’s ecosystems, and humans are causing extinctions and invasions of plant and animal species. Understanding the conditions under which these concurrent changes may amplify or mitigate impacts on plant and animal biodiversity and the functioning of ecosystems is among the greatest current challenges for ecology. I will synthesize results arising a globally distributed, collaborative network of identically replicated grassland experiments, the Nutrient Network, and will present a cross-section of the network’s insights into the role of climate in shaping how mammalian herbivores and nutrients control plant and animal biodiversity and ecosystem processes in the world’s grassland ecosystems.

Workshop: Nitrogen, climate, and ecosystem functioning in the Netherlands – and the rest of the world  (14.00h in Orion, B3042) 

Prof. Elizabeth Borer

Professor of Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour

University of Minnesota

The Dutch government is taking measures to reduce nitrogen deposition and carbon emissions with the goal of ‘improving the quality of nature’ in the country and meeting climate obligations. Often, the impacts of climate and nitrogen deposition are considered separately, yet there is increasing evidence that these global changes act together to cause unexpected outcomes for the functioning of ecosystems. We’ll discuss the state of science on this topic, with a focus on grasslands, and consider where and when these and other global changes are most likely to impact ecosystems. 

In preparation, attendees are asked to read the following two articles that will be discussed during the workshop:

The associated workshop will be from 14.00-15.30 in Orion, B3042. The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the seminar’s speaker and have a discussion about a hot topic in science. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops. Registration is required for this workshop and you can sign up by emailing Andries Janse van Vuuren (andries.jansevanvuuren@wur.nl).

*** This seminar and workshop has been postponed until further notice ***

Dear all,

We would like to invite you to attend April’s Wageningen Evolution & Ecology Seminar (WEES) and Workshop in-person!  

The seminar will take place on Thursday 20th April, 16.00-17.00 in Orion, C3033. This will be followed by drinks at The Spot and the opportunity to have dinner with the speaker (sign up for dinner with Ruth Fawthrop – r.fawthrop@nioo.knaw.nl).

The associated workshop will be from 14.00-15.30 in Forum, B0408. The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the seminar’s speaker and have a discussion about a hot topic in science. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops. Registration is required for this workshop and you can sign up by emailing Ruth Fawthrop (r.fawthrop@nioo.knaw.nl).

This will be a great event so please forward this information to anyone who could be interested!

______________________________________________________

Seminar: In your face: exploring morphology, evolution and development of the skull (16.00h in Orion, C3033)

Dr. Arkhat Abzhanov

Reader in Evolution and Developmental Genetics

Imperial College London, UK

Understanding the origins of morphological variation is one of the chief challenges to the modern biological sciences. Cranial diversity in vertebrates is a particularly inviting research topic as animal heads and faces show many dramatic and unique adaptive features which reflect their natural history. We aim to reveal molecular mechanisms underlying evolutionary processes that generate such morphological variation. To this purpose, we employ a synergistic combination of geometric morphometrics, comparative molecular embryology and functional experimentation methods to trace cranial evolution in reptiles, birds and mammals, some of the most charismatic animals on our planet.  Our research is revealing how particular changes in developmental genetics can produce morphological alterations for natural selection to act upon, for example in generating adaptive radiations.

Workshop: From field to lab and back: exploring non-model organisms (14.00h in Forum, B0408)

Working on non-model organisms can offer valuable ecological and evolutionary insights but also presents novel challenges for researchers. In this workshop, we will consider the benefits and challenges of working on evolutionary non-model species, with discussions spanning from morphology to mechanism and from nature/museums to the lab. There are no required pre-reads for this workshop.  

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About WEES

WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS.  

Want to organise seminars yourself? Join WEES!

WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings.  

For more information please visit www.weeswageningen.nl and follow us on twitter @weeswageningen

Seminar: Making sense of global biodiversity – exploring new frontiers and collaborations (16:00 in Orion C1040) 

Prof. Tomas Roslin Professor in Insect Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), Sweden Principal Investigator for the LifePlan Project: A planetary inventory of life.

We all know that biodiversity is dwindling. Yet, for much of this diversity, we do not know what it is, where it is and what drivers it responds to. Joint data repositories are flooded by data on the least diverse organism groups, whereas data on the most diverse groups are in short supply. Given this state of affairs, we need to aim faster, higher and stronger in biodiversity science.

Prof. Roslin will talk about our attempts to do so, and to generate commensurate biodiversity data across organism groups. More specifically, he will talk about the LIFEPLAN project, which aims to characterize biological diversity through a worldwide sampling program, and develop the bioinformatic and statistical approaches needed to make the most out of these data. This is one of the most ambitious, globally distributed and systematically collected datasets to date on a broad range of taxonomical groups. Assessing global biodiversity calls not only for new methods and tools, but for new ways of working together as a global scientific community. Each of those elements are now coming together, and Prof. Roslin will argue that we are currently seeing the most exciting times ever in the discovery of nature!

Workshop: Distributed Science – The benefits and challenges of crowdsourcing in research  (14:00 in Orion B3042) 

Crowdsourcing, crowd science, distributed experiments, global sampling designs — call it what you will. By teaming up in new ways, we scientists can achieve so much more than ever before. In this workshop, we will discuss the new vistas opened up by collaborating in constellations of tens to thousands of people, as well as some of the challenges involved.

The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the seminar’s speaker and have a discussion based on a topic of their expertise. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops. 

Registration is required for this workshop, and you can sign up by emailing Lydia Cornu (lydia.cornu@wur.nl) 

Dear All,

We are pleased to invite you to attend February’s Wageningen Evolution & Ecology Seminars (WEES) in-person! The seminar will take place on Tuesday, February 28th, 16:00-17:00 in Orion C2035. This will be followed by drinks at The Spot!

The associated workshop will be from 14.00-15.00 in Orion B0503. The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the seminar’s speaker and have a discussion based on a topic of their expertise. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops. Registration is required for this workshop and you can sign up by emailing Stefan Bonestroo (stefan.bonestroo@wur.nl)

This will be a great event so please forward this information to anyone who could be interested! 

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Seminar: The Mind of a Bee - A rich and surprising exploration of the intelligence of bees (16:00 in Orion C2035)

Prof. Dr. Lars Chittka Professor in Sensory and Behavioural Ecology, School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London (UK)

“Most of us are aware of the hive mind — the power of bees as an amazing collective. But do we know how uniquely intelligent bees are as individuals? In this lecture I will explore the bees' remarkable cognitive abilities. You will learn that they are profoundly smart, have distinct personalities, can recognize flowers and human faces, exhibit basic emotions, count, use simple tools, solve problems, and learn by observing others. They may even possess consciousness. I will take you deep into the sensory world of bees, and illustrate how bee brains are unparalleled in the animal kingdom in terms of how much sophisticated material is packed into their tiny nervous systems. I also examine the psychological differences between bees and the ethical dilemmas that arise in conservation and laboratory settings because bees feel and think. Using examples from an insect whose sensory experiences rival those of humans, I will explore the singular abilities of some of the world’s most incredible creatures”

 Workshop: Ethical implications of the work in insect sentience (14:00 in Orion B0503)

In this workshop, we will discuss the ethical implications recent findings in insect cognition research might have on other work we do in science. Furthermore, considering the increasing demand for farmed insects, we will discuss what these findings could mean for this emerging industry. For this workshop there is no required reading.

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About WEES:

WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS. Want to organize seminars yourself? Join WEES! WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings.

For more information, please visit our website weeswageningen.nl.

Dear All,

We are pleased to invite you to attend January’s Wageningen Evolution & Ecology Seminars (WEES) in-person! The seminar will take place on

Tuesday, January 31st 2023, 16:00-17:00 in Orion C2030

This will be followed by drinks at The Spot!

The associated workshop will be from 14.00-15.00 in Orion B3042. The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the seminar’s speaker and have a discussion based on a topic of their expertise. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops. Registration is required for this workshop and you can sign up by emailing Liana Greenberg (Liana.greenberg@wur.nl)

This will be a great event so please forward this information to anyone who could be interested!

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Seminar:

Heat stress effects on insect reproduction

(16:00 in Orion C2030)

Dr. Graziella Iossa

Senior Lecturer in Zoology, Department of Life Sciences, Lincoln University, UK

Insects are declining at alarming rates, and while we know that climate change is implicated, the mechanisms driving these declines are unclear. We have known for a long time that reproduction in warm-blooded animals is sensitive to heat. Emerging evidence from lab studies shows that temperature extremes cause sterility before death in fruit flies and beetles. In this talk, I will explore whether extreme thermal sensitivity of (especially male) fertility affects insect population viability in nature. I will then explore how an often-neglected life stage, the egg stage, is a critical component for understanding how insects will respond to climate change.

Workshop: Work-life balance and other challenges in academia

(14:00 in Orion B3042)

Work-life balance is a difficult art to master in academia. In this workshop, I will offer my experience of career break, career change, and mentor to women returning to science. There will be an opportunity to discuss common challenges women face when navigating an academic career.

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About WEES:

WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS.

Want to organize seminars yourself? Join WEES!

WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to

weeswageningen@gmail.com

and join one of our meetings.

For more information, please visit our website

weeswageningen.nl

Dear All,

 We are pleased to invite you to attend December’s Wageningen Evolution & Ecology Seminars (WEES) in-person! The seminar will take place on Wednesday, December 14th 2022, 16:00-17:00 in Orion C2035. This will be followed by drinks at The Spot!

---------------------------------------------------------------------- Seminar: Is Conservation Working? Advancing Impact Evaluation to Improve Outcomes for People and Nature.

Prof. Julia Jones

Prince Bernhard Chair for International Nature Conservation, Utrecht University, The Netherlands   & Professor in Conservation Science, Bangor University, Wales

 We are living through a nature emergency. In response to this catastrophic loss of biodiversity, a wide range of conservation efforts are being implemented around the world. However, and this might surprise those of you who don’t work in conservation, despite billions having been spent on conservation interventions over the last few decades, we know remarkably little about what works and what doesn’t. Drawing on a global analysis of the effectiveness of protected areas at protecting waterbirds, and a Randomized Control Trial of a payment for ecosystem services scheme in Bolivia I will explore how impact evaluation can improve the outcomes from conservation. Madagascar’s biodiversity is unique but under extraordinary pressure. I will show evidence (from three impact evaluations published this year) that, despite the challenges, conservation in Madagascar is making a difference. I will end by making the case for a dose of optimism in conservation

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About WEES:

WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS.

Want to organize seminars yourself? Join WEES!

WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings.

To stay up to date, follow us on twitter @weeswageningen

Dear all,

We would like to invite you to attend November’s  Wageningen Evolution & Ecology Seminar (WEES) and workshop in-person! The seminar will take place on Thursday November 24th, 16.00-17.00 in C2035 in Orion. This will be followed by drinks at The Spot and the opportunity to have dinner (at own cost) with the speaker (sign up for dinner with Sjoerd Woudenberg (sjoerd.woudenberg@wur.nl)

The associated workshop will be from 14.00-15.00 in Orion. The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the seminar’s speaker and have a discussion based on recent publications. The workshops are a good way to get acquainted with hot topics in science and to learn how to discuss these topics with leading scientists in the field. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops. Registration is required for this workshop and you can sign up by emailing Sjoerd Woudenberg (sjoerd.woudenberg@wur.nl)

This will be a great event so please forward this information to anyone who could be interested!

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Seminar: Evolution of plant architecture through changes in auxin movement control (16.00h in C2035, Orion)

Dr. Yoan Coudert, Laboratory of Plant Development and Reproduction

Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, France

The successful colonization of land by plants was accompanied by the diversification of their branching architecture. The phytohormone auxin is a major regulator of branch initiation and has a similar inhibitory role in flowering plants and mosses, two major land plant lineages that diverged from their most recent common ancestor several hundred million years ago. PIN-mediated polar auxin transport is crucial for auxin function in flowering plant branching control. Long-range tropic auxin gradients are sustained locally through the regulation of cell-to-cell connectivity at the level of plasmodesmata, although this is comparatively a minor pathway. In the moss Physcomitrium patens, an extant representative of early land plants, PIN proteins have a minor role in leafy shoot branching control and the symplasmic pathway could instead represent the main route for auxin movement in the stem. Using a combination of developmental genetics and computational modelling, we explore the role of symplasmic fields and plasmodesmal gating in auxin movement, and thereby assess their contribution to the evolution of plant morphogenesis.

Workshop: Working with model bryophytes (14.00h in Orion) Bryophytes are becoming more and more important models species to better understand the evolution of land plants. What kind of processes are a necessity for life on land and are their key components conserved between bryophytes and flowering plants. In this workshop we will discuss the experimental possibilities of bryophyte models (Physcomitrium, Marchantia) with their advantages, disadvantages and how we can use them to better understand plant trait evolution and plant evo-devo. As preparation for the workshop, please read the following papers:

Delaux, et al. (2019). Reconstructing trait evolution in plant evo–devo studies. Current Biology, 29(21), R1110-R1118. Naramoto et al. (2022). The bryophytes Physcomitrium patens and Marchantia polymorpha as model systems for studying evolutionary cell and developmental biology in plants. The Plant Cell, 34(1), 228-246.

WEES background

WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS.

Want to organize seminars yourself? Join WEES!

WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings.

For more information, please visit www.weeswageningen.nl and follow us on twitter @weeswageningen

Dear all,

We would like to invite you to attend October’s IN-PERSON Wageningen Evolution & Ecology Seminar (WEES) and afternoon workshop! The seminar will take place on Thursday, October 13th, 16:00-17:00h in Orion C3033, where Dr. Christian Kost from Universität Osnabrück will present his work on “Evolution of mutualistic cooperation within microbial communities”.

There will also be a workshop with Dr. Kost about the topic of “Are bacteria multicellular organisms?” from 14:00-15:30 in Orion B4044. The workshop is aimed for HBO, MSc, PhD students, and postdocs. Registration is required, so please email Alanna Leale (alanna.leale@wur.nl) to register. See below for more information.

Please forward this information to anyone who could be interested. Thank you!

Evolution of mutualistic cooperation within microbial communities (16h00 Orion C3033)

Dr. Christian Kost Professor, Department of Ecology Universität Osnabrück, Germany

Cooperative interactions challenge evolutionary theory: why should one organism invest costly resources to benefit other individuals rather than using them to enhance its own fitness? Despite this conundrum, obligate interactions, in which two or more microorganisms exchange costly metabolites, are very common in natural microbial communities. However, the factors facilitating the evolution of metabolic cooperation remain poorly understood. We address this issue by analysing both genetically engineered and experimentally evolved metabolic cross-feeding interactions. Our experiments reveal that adaptive advantages drive the evolution of cooperative cross-feeding within microbial communities: by losing the ability to autonomously synthesize certain metabolites, bacteria become dependent on other community members producing these compounds. The resulting metabolic interdependencies trigger a coevolutionary process, during which reciprocal cooperative investments rapidly increase. In my talk, I will discuss the evolutionary drivers of this process and highlight how the emergent population dynamics enhances cooperativity within physiologically interconnected consortia.

Workshop (14:00 Orion B4044) Are bacteria multicellular organisms?

Microbiology traditionally considers bacterial behaviours from the perspective of an individual cell. In recent years, however, awareness has grown that bacteria mainly occur in groups of cells that typically consist of phenotypically diverse individuals. The resulting bacterial consortia frequently display collective behaviours such as intercellular communication, obligate metabolic cooperation, division of labour, complex life cycles, or altruistic cell suicide that are otherwise considered to be hallmarks of truly multicellular organisms. Thus, understanding bacteria requires a perspective that integrates multiple levels of biological organisation (cell, population, community) and appreciates the ecological and evolutionary contexts that favoured different strategies. Moreover, unravelling the evolutionary mechanisms giving rise to these emergent properties will likely shed new light on how evolution operates on groups of interacting individuals, ultimately causing the emergence of an increased complexity. In this workshop, we will discuss this interesting problem in light of both empirical and theoretical evidence available. Participants are encouraged to browse the corresponding literature beforehand to discuss this issue from their perspective.

The workshop will take place 14:00 to 15:30 in Orion B4044. Registration is required, so please email Alanna Leale (alanna.leale@wur.nl) to register. The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the speaker of the seminar and have a discussion based on recent publications. The workshops are a good possibility to become acquainted with hot topics in science and to gain experience in discussing these topics with leading scientists in the field. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops.

Smaller meetings / lunch / dinner with Dr. Kost: Dr. Kost will be at WUR during the morning on October 13, so is available for individual meetings and lab/group visits. A small group will also have lunch and dinner with our invited speaker. If you are interested in joining for lunch, dinner, or having smaller meetings with Christian Kost, please contact Alanna Leale (alanna.leale@wur.nl) so she can organise a schedule. Please note that meals will be at your own cost.

WEES background & call for new members: WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS.

Interested in joining the WEES committee and organizing seminars yourself? WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings.

For more information please visit: www.weeswageningen.nl or follow us on Twitter @weeswageningen

Dear all,

We would like to invite you to attend September’s Wageningen Evolution & Ecology Seminar (WEES) and workshop in-person! The seminar will take place on Thursday 22th September, 16.00-17.00 in C2035 in Orion. This will be followed by drinks at The Spot and the opportunity to have dinner (at own cost) with the speaker (sign up for dinner with Mitchel Bourne – mitchel.bourne@wur.nl).

The associated workshop will be from 14.00-15.00 in in Orion. The workshop gives attendees the opportunity to meet the seminar’s speaker and have a discussion based on recent publications. The workshops are a good way to get acquainted with hot topics in science and to learn how to discuss these topics with leading scientists in the field. Furthermore, BSc and MSc students can get 1 ECTS for attending 2 workshops. Registration is required for this workshop and you can sign up by emailing Mitchel Bourne (mitchel.bourne@wur.nl).

This will be a great event so please forward this information to anyone who could be interested!

Seminar: Potential of microbial volatiles to enhance biological control of pest insects (16.00h in C2035, Orion)

Prof. Dr. Bart Lievens,

Full professor,

KU Leuven University

Biological control using natural enemies such as predatory insects and parasitoids has become an important alternative way of pest management. However, biocontrol efficacy can be seriously hampered by dispersal of natural enemies away from the crop and/or the presence of hyperparasitoids in the crop. To improve biological pest control, insect behaviour can be manipulated by using attractants or deterrents to lure parasitoids in the crop or keep harmful insects away. While most research so far has focused on cues derived from plants and other insects, there is mounting evidence that insects also respond to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted by microorganisms. In this talk, I will discuss the potential of microbial volatiles to enhance biological pest control. Recent results from both laboratory assays and greenhouse experiments will be presented for the model food web consisting of sweet pepper, aphids, primary parasitoids and hyperparasitoids. Exploitation of these results may lead to novel semiochemical-based strategies to improve biological aphid control.

Workshop: Studying microbiomes using high-throughput sequencing: opportunities, pitfalls and challenges (14.00h in Orion)

Advances in molecular methods and next-generation sequencing (NGS) have ushered in new opportunities to characterize microbial communities in great detail. Yet, due to the high sensitivity of these methods, it is of utmost importance to include appropriate positive (mock community) and negative controls (DNA extraction and PCR controls) to decontaminate your dataset and interpret the results is a correct way. By using examples from our ongoing research on beer, plant and insect microbiomes, we will not only discuss the opportunities of NGS-based microbial community profiling, but also potential pit-falls and challenges. In addition, please feel free to ask whatever questions you have regarding microbiome analyses, and plant-microbe-insect interactions, and we’ll discuss it. As a preparation for the workshop, you could read one of the following papers:

Vargas et al. (2021). Bacterial community dynamics of tomato hydroponic greenhouses infested with hairy root disease. FEMS Microbiology Ecology, 97 (12), doi: 10.1093/femsec/fiab153.

Gloder et al. (2021). Parasitism by endoparasitoid wasps alters the internal but not the external microbiome in host caterpillars. Animal Microbiome, 3 (1), https://doi.org/10.1186/s42523-021-00135-y

Bossaert et al. (2020). Description of the temporal dynamics in microbial community composition and beer chemistry in sour beer production via barrel ageing of finished beers. International Journal Of Food Microbiology, 339, Art.No. 109030. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2020.109030

WEES background

WEES is an initiative of PhD students and postdocs at Wageningen University to organize a continuing series of stimulating seminars on contemporary topics in evolution and ecology. For this series we invite researchers from all over the world who have leading roles in their field. We aim to bring together different groups at Wageningen University using a variety of systems, but with a common interest in evolutionary and ecological questions. WEES is funded by graduate schools PE&RC, WIMEK, EPS, VLAG, and WIAS.

Want to organize seminars yourself? Join WEES!

WEES is looking for new members! We aim for a broad and diverse range in topics and would like to welcome new members to help and include topics not represented yet. If you are curious, send an email to weeswageningen@gmail.com and join one of our meetings.

For more information please visit www.weeswageningen.nl and follow us on twitter @weeswageningen