The department Bryophyte Ecology & Evolution at the Senckenberg Institute for Plant Form and Function Jena (SIP) and the University of Jena (FSU) deals with ecological, phylogenomic and microevolutionary research questions related to the biodiversity and the adaptation of plants – specifically bryophytes – to various habitats. Bryophytes, with mosses, liverworts and hornworts, are the second species rich land plant lineage (ca. 20,000 species) and play important functional roles in a wide range of ecosystems, e.g., in primary succession as pioneer plants, in primary production and water storage. We use the collection of the herbarium Haussknecht, experiments under controlled conditions and fieldwork to understand the interplay of molecular and morphological variation and environmental change in time and space. We are further interested in the role of bryophytes in ecosystem functioning and as indicator organisms in the context of biodiversity change in the Anthropocene. Our research is characterized by a multidisciplinary approach and combines, among others, genomic and transcriptomic evidence with morphological and ecological data.
Prof. Dr. Julia Bechteler
Head of research group Bryophyte Ecology and Evolution
Professor
Professor
