Working Group Professor Laforsch
The working group's research focuses on zoology and evolutionary ecology, especially on the phenomenon of phenotypic plasticity and the adaptation of animals to changing biotic and abiotic environmental factors. The spectrum of marine and limnic model organisms ranges from protozoa to vertebrates, with a major focus on the model organism Daphnia (water flea).
Another focus is on coral reef ecology and the influence of multiple stressors on communities, food webs, and ecosystem functions, using biotic stressors, such as predators and parasites, and anthropogenic stressors, such as so-called "micropollutants". For example, the topic of environmental contamination with microplastics and the associated effects on organisms and ecosystems is one of the central research areas of the Laforsch group.
In the interdisciplinary studies, current molecular biological methods, classical experimental approaches in laboratory and field studies, and modern imaging microscopic techniques are used.
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