Research assignments and contents

The lecture hall, Müggelseedamm 310

Pure and applied research

The Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries is one of the principal German centres for research on limnic ecosystems, and unites hydrologists, chemists, microbiologists, fish ecologists and fish biologists.

A combination of fundamental and applied research supports our long-term goal of management of aquatic ecosystems, via restoration, development and protection. Our research activities are primarily oriented to the analysis of the widespread structures and functions of freshwater ecosystems. Our subsidiary focus is the study of unique regional environments such as the Berlin river-lake system where numerous shallow lakes are interconnected by dominant rivers, and turbulence is a major influence.

• Topics of particular interest at the Institute include:
• exchange processes between aquatic and terrestrial environments,
• matter transformation processes within water bodies,
• and the food chain from bacteria to fish.

Each of these aspects is studied under natural conditions, and under anthropogenic influences (principally chemical stressors). We also investigate the long- term development and stability of dimictic and polymictic lakes under changing global, regional and local conditions in order to distinguish deterministic and stochastic processes. In ecology, flows of matter, energy, or even of information, are of interest.

Research projects

Our research is fundamental for the development of sound ecologically based concepts for restoration, remediation, management and protection. From this, the following research areas derive:

• Study of the transportation mechanisms and modelling of different processes of water currents and transport in seepage and near surface groundwater in the catchment of surface waters, as well the evaluation of such processes
• Inputs of nutrients and harmful substances from the catchment area into surface wate
  • Analysis of the loadings of different areas
  • Recording of the main paths of input and mechanisms of nutrients and pollutants into surface water bodies
  • Study of the transportation processes of nutrients and harmful substances from the catchment into surface waters, and modelling of such processes on different scale
• Transformation, retention and effects of nutrients and harmful substances in freshwater ecosystems with the inclusion of bacteria, algae, macrophytes, invertebrates and fishes and their interaction
• · Recording and modelling of water currents and processes of transportation in flowing waters and lakes
• Studies of turbulences and dynamics of suspended particles in lowland rivers
• Trophic interactions especially in lakes: bottom-up and top-down regulations of
  • Bacterial communities
  • Phytoplankton, zooplankton and zoobenthos communities up to
  • Fish communities
  • Effects of biomanipulations on the parasites of domestic fish populations
  • Taxonomy of important functional groups in limnic systems: bacteria (especially with methane and sulfur metabolism), phytoplankton (including picoplankton), zooplankton and fishes
  • Individual plasticity of fishes in reproduction, ontogenesis, behaviour and physiology
  • Population genetics and biology of reproduction of fishes (including species protection and re-establishment of former domestic species (for example the sturgeon Acipenser sturio)
  • Effect of direct (chemicals) and indirect (eutrophication) of anthropogenic loads on selected compartments of water bodies, including fish populations

Practical Applicationsn

Our research has practical applications in the following fields

• Ecological engineering, such as biomanipulation and calcite precipitation
• Sustainable water quality management (determination of critical loads for nutrients in flushed lakes and rivers)
• Ecohydrological river basin management
• Restoration measures to improve quality of surface waters in the north German lowland
• Protection of groundwater and drinking-water
• Sustainable inland fisheries and aquaculture to provide protein for human consumption

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