Paul Bodelier benoemd tot bijzonder hoogleraar Functionele Microbiële Ecologie | Radboud Universiteit Paul Bodelier is per 1 februari 2026 benoemd tot bijzonder hoogleraar Functionele Microbiële Ecologie aan de Faculteit der Natuurwetenschappen, Wiskunde en Informatica.

📰 Read more (Dutch): www.ru.nl/over-ons/nie...

📰 Read more (English): www.ru.nl/en/about-us/...

Fun fact: Paul was once a biology student at Radboud, graduating in 1991.

We are delighted to welcome him back and look forward to the knowledge, inspiration and collaboration he will bring to our department.

His work especially focuses on methane production and consumption, and on understanding how microbial processes scale up to ecosystem functioning.

Paul combines this role with his work at NIOO-KNAW @niooknaw.bsky.social, where he leads a research group in Microbial Ecology and has built a broad research line on microbial ecology and biogeochemical cycling in wetlands and soils.

Beginning this February, Paul Bodelier has joined our department as extraordinary professor of Functional Microbial Ecology.

Come along with some geese as they migrate back from their southern winter havens Geese's iconic "V" formations and trademark squawks can be seen and heard overhead as they go back and forth to the south through the year. But what does it take for such a long trip?

Read the article here: www.npr.org/2026/03/09/n...

#Ecology #BirdMigration #MovementEcology

How do geese know when it’s time to move north? 🪿

In a recent NPR story on goose migration, Andrea Kölzsch, assistant professor in our Department of Ecology, explains how geese “follow the green wave” in spring, tracking warmer temperatures, melting snow, and fresh vegetation along the way.

Christine Mohrmann Stipend for ten female PhD candidates | Radboud University Ten female PhD candidates from Radboud University received a Christine Mohrmann Stipend on 24 February.

PhD candidate Yvet Telgenkamp @ecology-radboud.bsky.social was awarded a Christine Mohrmann stipend by our university. Congratulations! Read more about Yvet and the history and goal of the stipend here www.ru.nl/en/about-us/...

Zoetwatervissen kunnen beter tegen oplopende temperaturen dan zoutwatervissen | Radboud Universiteit Vissen die in rivieren, sloten en beken voorkomen, kunnen beter tegen water dat warmer wordt dan vissen in de zee. Dat blijkt uit onderzoek van ecoloog Wilco Verberk van de Radboud Universiteit.

📰 RU press release in Dutch here: www.ru.nl/onderzoek/on...

Heat Tolerance and Its Plasticity in Freshwater and Marine Fishes Reflect Exposure to Extremes and Seasonal Variation in Habitat Temperatures We found that freshwater fishes had higher heat tolerance with greater plasticity than marine fishes, reflecting exposure to higher and more variable temperatures. Accordingly, the benefits of plasti...

🔍 Read the paper here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

📰 RU press release in English here: www.ru.nl/en/research/...

They found that freshwater species exhibit both greater heat tolerance and plasticity, meaning that they are better able to acclimate to warmer temperatures. This work has important implications for predicting species' responses to climate change. 🐟

🚨 Paper alert!
A new study published in Ecology Letters by Wilco Verberk and colleagues synthesized data on heat tolerance and heat tolerance plasticity across more than 500 fish species in freshwater, brackish, and marine environments.

5/ This highlights the relevance of timing in ditch management for sustainable and climate-smart water management, and the crucial role of submerged macrophytes in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions.

Happy reading!

doi.org/10.1016/j.aq...

4/ Importantly, they demonstrated that this macrophyte-induced CH4 filter can be strongly reduced by ditch dredging, leading to substantially higher CH4 emissions.

3/ in regulating total greenhouse gas production and emissions from agricultural drainage ditches. Their results show that submerged macrophytes can suppress up to ~95% of the total CH4 produced in these systems, acting as an important natural methane filter.

2/
In this study, Quinten Struik and Romee Groenbos, along with Jose Reinaldo Paranaíba, Martijn Bakker, Berber Meulepas, Leon P.M. Lamers, Annelies Veraart, and Sarian Kosten, investigated the role of macrophyte-mediated CH4 oxidation

🧵 Paper Alert! 🚨

We are happy to share a new study published in Aquatic Botany, "Macrophyte-associated methane oxidation as a key process diminishing methane emissions from agricultural drainage ditches." 🫧🌿

Drenthe Nu Drenthe Nu is het dagelijks nieuwsprogramma van RTV Drenthe. Met vandaag onder meer: Compensatie voor uitbreiding oefenterrein De Haar is volgens gemeente Midden-Drenthe allereerst voor Hooghalen en L...

4/ See the interview (in Dutch) at www.rtvdrenthe.nl/tv/afleverin... @ 9:42

Read the paper at doi.org/10.1007/s100...

#WorldWetlandsDay #GreenhouseGasses #Climate #Paludiculture #Sustainability #Science #Radboud #PhD #Drenthe

3/ To mitigate climate change and achieve carbon neutrality in 2050, drained peatlands can be rewetted and used for paludiculture, producing biomass, thatched roofs, and more. This way, the farmers can continue to use land that would otherwise become off-limits.

2/ These peatlands were drained for agriculture and emit a lot of greenhouse gases; in fact, even more than previously thought.

🧵 Today is World Wetlands Day, celebrating the importance of wetlands and their impact on people and the planet! 🌍

Two weeks ago, RTV Drenthe interviewed one of our PhD candidates, Quint van Giersbergen, in a drained peatland in Gasteren, Drenthe.

5/ Overall, her work contributes to making aquaculture more environmentally and economically sustainable. Congratulations, Ana Paula! 👏 ✨

#aquaculture #nutrientcycling #sustainability

4/ Finally, she tested the use of nutrient-rich pond sediments as a fertilizer for rucola cultivation, finding that sediment reuse could be a low-cost, environmentally friendly fertilization option.

3/ She also measured nutrient fluxes and greenhouse gas emissions over a complete production cycle in nine experimental ponds, comparing monoculture systems of grass carp and Nile tilapia as well as polyculture systems.

2/ Her research included a systematic review of studies of nutrient balances in freshwater aquaculture over the last 40 years (paper: doi.org/10.3390/app1...).

🧵 Yesterday Ana Paula Dalbem Barbosa successfully defended her doctoral thesis, a cotutelle between Radboud University and UNEMAT (Brazil), titled "Nutrient fluxes in aquaculture systems." 🎓🐟🌿

Raad eens wat ik doe | NPO Start In de mysterybox zit weer een beroep verstopt. Maar welk beroep is het dit keer? Is het een huisarts, een bouwvakker, een zangeres... of misschien wel iets heel anders? Door vier hints komen we stap v...

Nooit te jong om te leren: wat doet een ecoloog. Met in de hoofdrol onze collega Robin Lexmond 🦋

npo.nl/start/afspel...

Wetenschapsprogramma Focus volgt het spoor van methaan, van koe tot watergang CO₂ domineert het klimaatdebat, maar een ander broeikasgas is per molecuul veel krachtiger: methaan. De concentratie ervan in de atmosfeer blijft stijgen. Methaan komt vrij bij olie- en gaswinning, ui...

📅 Kijken: dinsdag 27 januari (NTR op NPO 2)
#RadboudUniversity #Ecology #methaan #waterkwaliteit #klimaat

www.h2owaternetwerk.nl/h2o-actueel/...

Mooi om te zien dat ons eigen onderzoek hierbij aan bod komt, met Sarian Kosten die toelicht hoe methaan in water ontstaat en waarom waterkwaliteit en ecosysteemprocessen zo belangrijk zijn in dit verhaal.

Methaan is een krachtig broeikasgas, en een deel van de uitstoot komt uit een bron die lang minder aandacht kreeg: onze binnenwateren (sloten, meren en rivieren). In het wetenschapsprogramma Focus volgt presentator Petra Grijzen het spoor van methaan.