We encourage students to attend our practical courses to get hands-on experience with soil zoology and ecology (Ecology of soil animals and Key taxa)
Supervisor: Anton Potapov
Type: MSc thesis
Consumers affect plants and ecosystem by grazing on plants and microbes. It has been shown for large mammalian herbivores that communities dominated by selective feeders decrease plant diversity, whereas communities dominated by nonselective bulk feeders increase plant diversity. In this student project, we will design experiment to test the same hypothesis on soil fauna and microorganisms. Do selective feeders like springtails and mites reduce fungal and bacterial diversity, while large bulk feeders like myriapods, isopods and earthworms promote it?
Evaluating biases in soil large invertebrate monitoring: handsorting vs. Tullgren extraction
Supervisor: Jing-Zhong Lu
Type: Thesis / Internship
Determining species composition and abundance are fundamental questions in soil ecology. For macro-invertebrates (>3 mm), handsorting is widely used globally but suffers from biases linked to environmental contexts and human experience. To quantify these biases, an international team across more than ten laboratories is conducting a coordinated experiment comparing handsorting efficiency against heat-based Tullgren extractions. We seek a motivated student to join this initiative. The candidate will help with image analysis or analyse datasets to evaluate how human and environmental factors interact to affect data quality. Ultimately, this project will help standardize global monitoring methodologies, ensuring more robust data for future soil biodiversity conservation.
Annelid fauna of an extensively managed meadow orchard
Supervisor: Nicole Scheunemann
Type: Internship (earthworms) or MSc thesis (Enchytraeidae + earthworms)
Extensively managed meadow orchards can be hotspots of biodiversity where populated areas meet farmland. Soil biodiversity benefits from microhabitats (hedgerows, stone piles etc.) as well as pesticide-free management and low-intensity sheep grazing or mowing. In the vicinity of Görlitz, one such meadow orchard is being investigated for its aboveground as well as belowground biodiversity. In this project, we will add to the already existing data set by investigating biodiversity of earthworms and Enchytraeidae (potworms) biodiversity in grazed as compared to mowed areas of the meadow orchard, and will also investigate the effect of different microhabitats for these animal groups. The work will consist of 1-2 days field work, followed mainly by morphological identification of animals using (stereo) microscopes. The following analysis and report will focus on differences in biodiversity between different parts of the meadow orchard, as well as comparison to other animals groups (existing data set) and literature, highlighting advantages and disadvantages of individual management practices.
Enchytraeidae area mass regression
Supervisor: Nicole Scheunemann
Type: Internship
Enchytraeidae (potworms) fulfil important ecosystem functions e.g., in decomposition of organic material, turbation of soil, and in the food web. Next to the rather time-consuming species identification, biomass of these animals provides important information on their share in ecosystem functioning. But estimating the biomass has been complicated and needed precise length measurements in the past. In this project, biomass of a number of Enchytraeidae will be measured alive and in dried animals. In addition, animals will be scanned using a paper scanner to estimate the area covered by their body. From these scans, together with the real biomass measurements, an area-mass relationship (regression) will be built to make future estimates of biomasses possible from easy scans instead of complicated length measurements. The project will not include neither field work nor identification work. Instead, delicate weight measurements and computer work will be conducted.
Enchytraeidae of German grassland sites
Supervisor: Nicole Scheunemann
Type: MSc thesis (plus preceding internship), available from October 2026
Within the framework of DFG Biodiversity Exploratories, the BE-DEF project investigates the effect of land use intensity on the biodiversity and ecosystem functions mediated by Enchytraeidae (potworms) in grasslands. This MSc project will investigate a subset of sampling sites of the BE-DEF project and focusses on comparing Enchytraeidae community composition between either grazed vs. mowed, high vs. low intensity grazed sites, or fertilized vs. unfertilized grasslands. There will be no fieldwork included, but morphological identification of Enchytraeidae using microscopes, evaluation of individual morphological traits, and analysis of proteome fingerprints or stable isotope patterns of Enchytraeidae. For these analyses, preparation of lab measurements and anaylsis of results will be conducted, but not the measurement itself.
Trends in soil fauna communities over time
Supervisors: Nicole Scheunemann, Borbála Szabó
Type: Internship
The TrenDiv project (“Trends in hidden taxa and habitats – understanding the extent and impact of the biodiversity crisis”) investigates how communities of different soil animal taxa have changed over the last 40-50 years. We resample sites where soil animal communities have been described during the 1980s and 1990s to find out how the biodiversity crisis is affecting soil ecosystems. This internship will focus on single datasets, i.e. sampling sites, from this project, and compare historical and recent animal densities, biomass and/or diversity. There is no fieldwork or animal extraction included. Instead, Collembola or Oribatida will be sorted from pre-extracted animal communities using stereo microscopes. Identification to morphospecies or evaluation of morphological traits can be learned, and biomass estimates will be conducted using a scanner. Further, environmental factors like soil pH, soil texture, and C:N ratio will be measured.
Molecular methods and population genetics. High throughput sequencing of “legacy” DNA markers to explore the biodiversity of soil organisms.
Supervisor: Clément Schneider
Type: Internship+Thesis
The aim of this project is to improve molecular laboratory methods for the sequencing of so called legacy DNA markers (nu-rDNA, mtDNA) useful for streamlined phylogenetic placement and identification of soil organisms. We propose an internship that focus on methodology. The offer could be further expended as a master thesis, in which you would analyses the diversity and connectivity of Springtails species populations in three monitoring sites of Germany, through population genetics. The project offers training in molecular method, laboratory work and bio-informatics, including first hand insight into third generation high-throughput DNA sequencing (Oxford Nanopore). Your main qualities are motivation, thoroughness and ability to show autonomous thinking, in particular in bibliography search and reading to find new ideas. Determination is also required to break through the lab work (lots of trial and error and troubleshooting is anticipated). Familiarity with a coding language and/or Linux environment is a major plus to harness the bio-informatics steps.
MSc Thesis: Establishment of a fine grain monitoring scheme for soil mesofauna communities combining meta-genomics and image analysis (Deep-Learning).
Supervisor: Clément Schneider
Type: Thesis
Soil mesofauna communities are an essential part of soil ecosystems and their richness and composition can provide bio-indicators of soil wellness. However their analysis through traditional means is time-consuming The aim of this project is to establish a fine grain monitoring scheme of soil mesofauna communities combining image analysis (deep-learning) and meta-genomics. During the master thesis, the student goal is to establish a protocol and strategy to leverage innovative approaches (image analysis and meta-genomics) to allow monitoring of soil animals at high spatial and temporal resolution. In practice, the imaging and laboratory methods are pre-established and will require only transfer knowledge to the student. In turn the student is expected to help fine-tuning the methods and apply them to a real world study case. The project is for students interested the development and application of innovative tools for biodiversity monitoring. Programming skills are required (R or Python).“
Internet of soil fauna – information flows in soil food webs
Supervisor: Anton Potapov
Type: Internship+Thesis
Soil fauna lives in a labyrinth of corridors with water and air. Many of them rely on chemical and vibrational cues to do communicate with other species, search for food and maybe even warn each other. Currently we know very little about communication among different fauna species in the soil and how this is linked to their interactions and soil functioning. This is an open project idea for creative students that are motivated to experiment and explore this unexplored question. For example, it can be implemented as a small laboratory experiment with several soil fauna species communicating in mesocosms. This project is linked to collaboration network of terrestrial and aquatic ecologists in iDiv and internationally.
Field experiment: How soil detritivores support litter carbon sequestration in soil organic matter
Supervisor: Anton Potapov
Type: Internship+Thesis (not earlier than autumn 2024)
Did you know that soil invertebrates can consume >90% of fallen leaves in the forest? In fact, top layers of the soil are often consisting mainly of invertebrate faeces. This facilitates microbial growth in soil, but can it also facilitate productions and stabilisation of soil organic matter? To address this question, we participate in a cross-European pilot experiment with isotopically labelled invertebrate faeces. The student would prepare and implement a subset of the experiment near of Görlitz as a part of international team. The project is suitable for students who are interested in experimentation with soil functions and carbon cycling.
