Food Web Ecology and Fish Communities

We study food webs in lotic systems with particular emphasis on the structure of their fish populations and communities. We combine research on the diversity of species, functional groups and size structure with process-oriented studies on fish behavior, biotic interactions, energy flow and transfer efficiencies. Population genetics analyses are added where needed. We contribute to the long-term monitoring program of IGB (fish communities in Lake Müggelsee and Lake Stechlin). To facilitate large-scale comparisons of fish communities in lakes, we collaborate with several European and North American working groups.