Story

The sea has always been part of his life. Ekin Tilic grew up in Turkey and spent his youth on the Mediterranean – diving and searching for nudibranchs, which fascinated him. While studying at the University of Bonn, he became interested in marine invertebrates.

From zombie worms that decompose whale bones with acid to creatures that make the sea glow through bioluminescence, the deep sea is home to an incredible diversity of life. Choosing a favourite worm? His answer: ‘It’s always the worm I’m working on at the moment.’ Currently, there is a new, as yet unnamed species in his office.

How do you find a name for a new species? Ekin explains that there are international guidelines for this. ‘Besides, you shouldn’t name an animal after yourself,’ he says with a wink. However, researchers are allowed to name new species after their colleagues. Ekin was accorded this special honour: together with a research team, he discovered new species of deep-sea ribbon worms (Nemertea) and established a new genus: Alvinonemertes. When another research team later identified an additional species of this genus, it was named Alvinonemertes tilici in his honour.

‘Exploring life in the sea and discovering and describing new species.’

This is how Ekin sums up his work in a single sentence. He has been part of the Senckenberg Society for two and a half years. What makes him particularly proud is the commitment of his team. In addition to his research at Senckenberg, Ekin is also a private lecturer at the University of Bonn. He sees the combination of research and museum work as a great strength, because science must be made visible and accessible to the wider public.

‘People already know that we need to protect our oceans.’ In order to protect them, we need to explore and understand them. The deep sea is still largely unexplored. Researchers are regularly discovering new species, especially among marine invertebrates, much more frequently than one might expect. With the help of state-of-the-art methods such as molecular genetics, even the smallest and rarest representatives of this animal group can be identified and described. Thanks to scientists like Ekin, these hidden life forms are also coming to the attention of the public.

Trapped insects in amber are like time capsules, offering a glimpse into a bygone era. At Senckenberg, Monica specialises in researching fossils that are millions of years old, some of which can be found right there on her desk. Amber research can seem puzzling to outsiders at first. To give the inhabitants of Madagascar a vivid insight into her research and clarify any open questions, she has even published a comic book with her team.

As a child, Mónica had other dreams: she wanted to be a gymnast, an artist or a dancer. Science wasn’t necessarily her favourite subject, but her fascination with insects never left her. ‘Even as a child, I collected butterfly larvae. Eventually, they turned into butterflies that fluttered around my room. Those were special moments,’ Mónica recalls.

‘I describe fossil insects that lived millions of years ago and investigate how different resins acted as insect traps.’

She studied parasitology at the Universidad Autónoma Chapingo in Mexico. There, her professor sparked her interest in amber, especially Chiapas amber. The Chiapas region is not only known for its rainforest, but also for its impressive biodiversity and cultural diversity.

The perfection and aesthetics of amber and its enclosed insects never cease to fascinate Mónica. ‘Sometimes I am overwhelmed by the countless possibilities that amber offers. My favourite specimens are always the ones I am currently researching,’ says Mónica.

‘We can better protect what we know. We need to understand the past in order to preserve today’s diversity.’

Research into amber is one of the many keys to understanding the evolution of insects and the function of prehistoric ecosystems. According to Mónica, the big challenge is to bring together the fragments of yesterday and today in order to paint a complete picture of biological diversity.

Reptiles and amphibians intrigue us through their diversity, behaviour and often unusual appearance. However, they also evoke fear in many people. ‘Sometimes we get calls from concerned people who have seen a snake in their garden. I was able to explain to one caller that there is no need to be seriously afraid of snakes in Germany and that he had a nice, harmless grass snake in his garden.’ Her advice is simple: he can enjoy his garden as it is and doesn’t need to do anything else. Later, the man actually called back and said he had hoped to see the snake again.

Not a snake therapist, but a technical assistant in herpetology at Senckenberg. Linda wanted to become independent relatively quickly after school and started an apprenticeship at the Senckenberg School. ‘I’m more of a practical person. I didn’t want to study, but I still work in science.’  During her training, she fell in love with herpetology, with its diverse collection and live animals at the institute.

‘I am responsible for the scientific collections, which involves cataloguing and inventorying the objects that my colleagues add to the collection.’

However, this also means sometimes working through 200 boxes of material dating back to the 1940s and documenting the finds in the database. Or carrying out molecular genetic analyses, on the basis of which scientists can describe new species.

‘There are many little things that make my job varied. And you get to know so many people.’

Through international collaborations, Linda broadens her horizons beyond Frankfurt: interactions with visiting researchers from all over the world open up new perspectives. This also allows collections to grow, making reptiles and amphibians accessible to researchers from all over the world. Linda’s meticulous work forms the basis for this and ensures that we not only preserve these fascinating animals, but also truly understand them.

During his first two years at the Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment in Tübingen, Omar literally turned the palaeontological collection upside down. In doing so, he discovered that numerous bones had been incorrectly attributed to plateosaurs. Tuebingosaurus maierfritzorum was born. ‘That was a key moment for me, when I realised how important my work is.’

As a palaeontologist and curator, Omar combines research and education. At the museum, he examines fossils and creates a digital archive for colleagues worldwide. At the same time, he curates museum exhibitions by presenting his latest findings.

‘My research flows into the exhibitions. I think about how to make the results accessible to a wide audience. Because the museum texts have to immediately spark the interest of visitors.’

Even as a child, Omar was fascinated by dinosaurs and traced illustrations of the giant lizards from books. A career in this field was not part of his plan at first. While studying biology and geology at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, Omar stumbled upon palaeontology rather by chance. When he learned that the Palaeontology Department of the Faculty of Natural Sciences was looking for an assistant and offering the opportunity to pursue a doctoral dissertation, he seized the chance.

‘I often hear from acquaintances and friends, “You have the job I dreamed of as a child.” To which I ask, “Then why didn’t you do it?” Some say it’s not a real profession.’

Palaeontology is not just research – and after graduation, the path does not necessarily lead to a professorship. Like many other professions, that of a palaeontologist is multifaceted. Omar wants to convey this to parents and teachers: it is one of many paths you can take. For Omar, it was definitely the right one: every newly discovered fossil adds another piece to the great puzzle of biodiversity.