Willkommen
Department of Forest Entomology
Welcome to the Department of Forest Entomology!
We are interested in insects living in forest ecosystems. We aim to understand the interactions of forest insects with their biotic and abiotic environment to sustain crucial ecosystem services. The main study systems comprise the fascinating group of bark beetles that affect forests worldwide, but we are also interested in the natural histories of other taxa. Our research fields deal with seasonal adaptations, symbiotic interactions, and molecular ecology. We study interactions with environmental conditions, like temperature or daylength, associations with fungi and bacteria, and we aim to disentangle the regulatory mechanisms and their evolutionary basis applying molecular tools. We also use molecular approaches to assess biodiversity in forest ecosystems, from communities and species to genes. Finally, our mission is to train the next generation of forest managers and scientists in the field of entomology. Answering basic and applied questions on ecologically and economically important insects will help us to contribute to sustainable and environmentally-friendly forest management approaches.
In case you are interested in our research, you want to work with us, you are interested in writing a thesis on forest insects, … , don’t hesitate to get in touch with us!
Selected publications
Hofmann S, Kautz M, Schebeck M, 2025. High plasticity in diapause responses benefits bark beetles in a changing climate. Ecological Entomology, 50, 62-73. https://doi.org/10.1111/een.13378
Mykhailenko A, Zieliński P, Bednarz A, Schlyter F, Andersson MN, Antunes B, Borowski Z, Krokene P, Melin M, Morales-García J, Müller J, Nowak Z, Schebeck M, Stauffer C, Viiri H, Zaborowska J, Babik W, Nadachowska-Brzyska K, 2024. Complex genomic landscape of inversion polymorphism in Europe’s most destructive forest pest. Genome Biology and Evolution, 16, evae263. https://doi.org/10.1093/gbe/evae263
Papek E, Ritzer E, Biedermann PHW, Cognato AI, Baier P, Hoch G, Kirisits T, Schebeck M, 2024. The pine bark beetle Ips acuminatus: an ecological perspective on life-history traits promoting outbreaks. Journal of Pest Science, 97, 1093-1122. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-024-01765-2
Hofmann S, Schebeck M, Kautz M, 2024. Diurnal temperature fluctuations improve predictions of developmental rates in the spruce bark beetle Ips typographus. Journal of Pest Science, 97, 1839-1852. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-024-01758-1
Schebeck M, Lehmann P, Laparie M, Bentz BJ, Ragland GJ, Battisti A, Hahn DA, 2024. Seasonality of forest insects: why diapause matters. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 39, 757-770. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2024.04.010
Frühbrodt T, Schebeck M, Andersson MN, Holighaus G, Kreuzwieser J, Burzlaff T, Delb H, Biedermann PHW, 2024. Verbenone – the universal bark beetle repellent? Its origins, effects, and ecological roles. Journal of Pest Science, 97, 35-71. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-023-01635-3
Moussa A, Nones S, Vannucchi PE, Shahzad G, Dittmer J, Corretto E, Schebeck M, Faccoli M, Battisti A, Stauffer C, Schuler H, 2024. The bacterial community of the European spruce bark beetle in space and time. Entomologia Generalis, 44, 211-222. https://doi.org/10.1127/entomologia/2023/2114
Schebeck M, Dobart N, Ragland GJ, Schopf A, Stauffer C, 2022. Facultative and obligate diapause phenotypes in populations of the European spruce bark beetle Ips typographus. Journal of Pest Science, 95, 889-899. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-021-01416-w
Netherer S, Kandasamy D, Jirosova A, Kalinova B, Schebeck M, Schlyter F, 2021. Interactions among Norway spruce, the bark beetle Ips typographus and its fungal symbionts in times of drought. Journal of Pest Science, 94, 591-614. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-021-01341-y
Schebeck M, Hansen EM, Schopf A, Ragland GJ, Stauffer C, Bentz BJ, 2017. Diapause and overwintering of two spruce bark beetle species. Physiological Entomology, 42, 200-210. https://doi.org/10.1111/phen.12200
NEWS: We will start the new Department of Forest Entomology on 1st November 2025. Stay tuned!