I am interested in the question how patterns in biodiversity are shaped by dynamics at both local and regional scales, and how knowledge on these dynamics can be used for the development of effective conservation and management schemes. Metacommunity ecology is a rapidly expanding field in community ecology with an increasing impact on current thinking about communities, biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and conservation biology. An important part of my recent research has focused on how spatial dynamics can affect the structure, biodiversity and trophic interactions in aquatic metacommunities. Using data from large scale field surveys (e.g., ditch networks in The Netherlands, farmland ponds in Belgium and temporary pools in the Bolivian Andes), we study how the structure of metacommunities is related to the dispersal mode of organisms, connectivity patterns in the landscape, heterogeneity in the environment and spatial scale. We also use mesocosm to explore potential interaction effects of dispersal with environmental heterogeneity.

Traits of species are not necessarily fixed but can be prone to rapid evolutionary change. Such changes can have important implications for the interactions of populations with their biotic, physical and chemical environment. For this reason, we are currently setting up a research line that will address contemporary micro-evolutionary change in zooplankton populations and the consequences this may have for the dynamics of food web interactions, biodiversity and ecosystem functions.

 

Education

  • 1990 Bachelor degree in biology (Ghent University)
  • 1992 Masters degree in zoology (Ghent University)
  • 2001 PhD (Ghent University), with greatest distinction (supervisors: H.J. Dumont and L. De Meester)

 

 Employment

  • 1998-2004 Scientific researcher at the Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium)
  • 2004-2010 Postdoctoral FWO-fellow at the Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium)
  • 2010 – present Tenured senior scientist at the Department of Aquatic Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW, The Netherlands) 

 

 Grants 

  • 1994 –1998 PhD-grant from the Institute for the Promotion of Innovation by Science and Technology in Flanders (IWT-Vlaanderen)
  • 2004 – 2007 Post-doctoral grant from the Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO-Vlaanderen)
  • 2007 – 2010 Post-doctoral grant from FWO-Vlaanderen
  • 2007 – 2008 Mobility grant from FWO-Vlaanderen for a one year stay at the laboratory of prof. Jon Shurin (University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada)
  • 2012-2016 Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO; ALW-OBW/16; budget: 247,032 EURO): ‘Development of effective strategies for the conservation and development of landscape wide aquatic biodiversity in agricultural areas’.
  • 2014-2018 Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO; ALW1PJ/13020; budget: 241,300 EURO): ‘Rapid evolution of zooplankton under conditions of stoichiometric imbalance: Consequences for ecosystem functions and trophic interactions’
  • 2014 NIOO Innovative Research Grant (budget: 40,000 EURO; joint project with M. Bezemer): ‘Resources and biotic interactions in a metacommunity context’
  • 2015 NIOO Innovative Research Grant (budget: 30,000 EURO; joint project with K. Verhoeven): ‘Rapid rotifer adaptation – an investigation into the adaptive potential of asexual lineages’
  • 2016 Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO; ALWOB.2016.003; ‘Inzetten op toepassing’ ALW1PJ/13020; budget: 10,000 EURO): ‘Ecologische verduurzaming van agrarische landschappen: naar een wetenschappelijk gefundeerde beheersvisie voor Polder Oukoop’

 

PhD-students

Ongoing PhD-projects:

  • Sven Teurlincx (NIOO-KNAW; promotors: E. van Donk and S. Declerck)
  • Kimberley Lemmen (NIOO-KNAW; promotors: E. van Donk and S. Declerck)
  • Zhou Libin (NIOO-KNAW; promotors: E. van Donk and S. Declerck)
  • Zhang Wei (NIOO-KNAW; promotors: E. van Donk and S. Declerck)

Defended:

  • Ximena Aguilera (2006; KULeuven; promotors: L. De Meester and S. Declerck)
  • Tadesse Dejenie (2008; KULeuven; promotors: L. De Meester and S. Declerck)
  • Jorge Coronel (2009; KULeuven; promotors: L. Brendonck and S. Declerck)
  • Maarten Vanderstukken (2011; KULeuven; promotors: K. Muylaert and S. Declerck)
  • Sarah Rousseaux (2011; KULeuven; promotors: L. De Meester and S. Declerck)
  • Mekonen Teferi (2013; KULeuven; promotors: L. De Meester, Jos Snoeks and S. Declerck)
  • Pieter Lemmens (2014; KULeuven; promotors: L. De Meester and S. Declerck)

 

Editorial board memberships

  • OIKOS (since 2016)
  • Journal of Plankton Research (since 2012)
  • Hydrobiologia (2006-2009)

 

Invited talks and keynote addresses on symposia and conferences (since 2010)

  • Xth Symposium of European Freshwater Sciences (SEFS), 2017, Olomouc, Czech Republic (Plenary talk)
  • XIVth International Rotifer Symposium, 2015, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic (Keynote)
  • ASLO-meeting, 2015, Granada, Spain (Invited tutorial talk)
  • 4th International conference of the Research Network on Amazonian Ichtyofauna, 2014, Cochabamba, Bolivia (Keynote)
  • Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting, 2014, Portland, USA (Invited speaker)
  • 1st Symposium of Freshwater Ecology of China, Ecological Society of China (ESC), 2013, Guangzhou, China (Keynote)
  • Community Assembly Symposium, 2012, EAWAG, Dübendorf, Switzerland (Invited speaker)
  • 5th Symposium of the European Pond Conservation Network (EPCN), 2012, Luxembourg, Luxembourg (Keynote)
  • 4th Symposium of the European Pond Conservation Network, 2010, Berlin, Germany (Keynote)
  • BELSPO Open Science Meeting, 2010, Brussels, Belgium (Invited speaker)

 

Participation in international workshops (Since 2010)

  • 'SMIRES' meeting (Science and Management of Intermittent Rivers and Ephemeral Streams; Cost Action), Working Group 4: Metacommunities, Pecs, Hungary, 30-31 January 2018 (Organizers: Thibault Datry, Rachel Stubbington, Jani Heino)
  • 'Nature4Life Biodiversity workshop', Sao Paulo, Brazil, 27-30.11.2016 (Organizers: Koos Biesmeijer and Johan Mol, Naturalis)
  • ‘sCAFE II: Community Assembly and the Functioning of Ecosystems in Open Systems’, The Synthesis Centre for Biodiversity Sciences (sDiv), Leipzig, Germany, 13-17.6.2016 (Organizers: Mathew Leibold and Ernest Morgan)
  • ‘sCAFE I: Community Assembly and the Functioning of Ecosystems in Open Systems’, The Synthesis Centre for Biodiversity Sciences (sDiv), Leipzig, Germany, 29.2-4.3.2016 (Organizers: Mathew Leibold and Ernest Morgan)
  • ‘Stoichiometric constraints of biodiversity – functioning relationships (sTOICH FUN), The Synthesis Centre for Biodiversity Sciences (sDiv), Leipzig, Germany, 2013 (Organizer: Helmut Hillebrand)
  • ‘Eco-evolutionary dynamics’, Lorentz Center, Leiden, The Netherlands, 2013 (Organizers: Stephanie Jenouvrier, Tom Reed, and Marcel Visser)
  • ‘Community Phylogenetics’ workshop, UQAM, Montreal, Canada, 2012 (Organizers: Allison Derry and Beatrice Beisner)
  • ‘SNF Community Assembly’ workshop, EAWAG, Luzern, Switzerland, 2012 (Organizer: Blake Matthews)

 

Other academic activities and achievements

  • Expert panel Bio3 (Biodiversity and Ecology) of the Research Foundation Flanders (FWO-Vlaanderen) (2013-2018)
  • Expert of the European Commission for the evaluation of projects on biodiversity (since 2013)
  • Outstanding Reviewer of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO, 2012)
  • Reviewer for  the journals: Ecology Letters, American Naturalist, Ecology, Proceedings of the Royal Society-B, Oecologia, Oikos, Journal of Animal Ecology, Global Ecology and Biogeography, Journal of Applied Ecology, Ecography, ISME Journal, PLOS ONE, Journal of Biogeography, Freshwater Biology, Limnology and Oceanography, Hydrobiologia

 

* Rapid evolution of zooplankton under conditions of stoichiometric imbalance: Consequences for ecosystem functions and trophic interactions.

Research project funded by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO; ALW1PJ/13020; duration: 2014-2018; budget: 241,300 EURO); principal investigator: Steven Declerck

According to ecological stoichiometry, consumers require biogenic elements (e.g. C, N, and P) in specific ratios and deviations from these ratios in food resources may result in lowered growth rates, fecundity and survival. A variety of consumer organisms have been shown to harbor substantial intra-specific genetic variation for the ability to cope with such elemental imbalances. An important implication is that stoichiometric imbalances can thus potentially be an important selection factor causing rapid micro-evolutionary adaptations in natural consumer populations. Such genetic adaptations can be achieved in many ways and have important consequences for food web interactions and ecosystem functions, such as nutrient cycling and primary productivity. For example, if adaptation leads to adjustments of body elemental composition, this may cause elemental mismatch with predators and result in a reduced predator performance and trophic interaction strength. Alternatively, if adaptations lead to a more efficient recycling of excess nutrients, this may re-enforce the limitation of the depleted element, and result in a positive evolutionary feedback. For this proposal we will make use of ‘evolved’ genotypes of the rotifer Brachionus calyciflorus that have been generated by a laboratory evolution experiment. Through the combination of common garden experiments and mathematical modeling, we will study (1) which are the traits through which the rotifer Brachionus calyciflorus adapts to stoichiometric imbalances in its food and (2) the consequences of such adaptations for elemental cycling, phytoplankton productivity and predator-prey interactions.

 

*Development of effective strategies for the conservation and development of landscape wide aquatic biodiversity in agricultural areas

Research project funded by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO; ALW-OBW/16; duration: 2012-2016; budget: 247,032 EURO); principal investigator: Steven Declerck

Freshwater habitats contribute disproportionately to biodiversity at the landscape scale and can be strongly affected and modified by land use changes. Through a field study and a thorough analysis of existing databases, the project will contribute to a better knowledge on the mechanisms that determine the dynamics of biodiversity in the landscape and the way this is affected by land use (agriculture, urbanization). In our study we will apply a metacommunity perspective by integrating local and landscape scale patterns of community structure and biodiversity. A major aim of the project is to find out which combination of cost-effective landscape measures do effectively contribute to an efficient conservation and development of aquatic biodiversity in human-dominated landscapes of The Netherlands.

  

 *Towards a Sustainable Management of Pond Diversity at the Landscape Level

Research project of the Belgian Federal Science Policy Office (promotor: Koen Martens, R.B.I.N.S.).

 This large scale project aims at revealing patterns of landscape biodiversity in a large number of small ponds, applying a spatially hierarchical sampling design. This project will yield insights in the spatial architecture of pond biodiversity at the nationwide level, which is a prerequisite for efficient conservation planning. In collaboration with other research groups, we study multiple groups of aquatic organisms simultaneously (including bacteria, phytoplankton, phytobenthos, zooplankton, macro-invertebrates, macrophytes, amphibians and fish), and seek to explain patterns of occurrence and diversity of these groups by landscape connectivity, the organisms' dispersal abilities, and natural and anthropogenic factors. In addition, an important work package of the PONDSCAPE project evaluates alternative pond management techniques via whole-pond experiments in the bomb crater area of Tommelen (Belgium). The project also forms the general framework for the PhD-project of Tom De Bie (supervisors: L. De Meester, L. Brendonck and S. Declerck).

 
 * Development of a Sustainable Integration of Fish Farming and Nature Values in Protected Wetland Areas

TWOL-project of the Flemish Government, Belgium (supervisors: S. Declerck & L. De Meester; IWT PhD-project of Pieter Lemmens)

This project combines a socio-economic with an ecological analysis with the aim to reconcile fish farming with nature conservation. The project has a strong focus on the resolution of conflicts that arise from cormorant predation, eutrophication and the practice of fish stocking. An additional scientific aim of this project (funded by IWT-Vlaanderen) is to experimentally evaluate the direct and indirect effects of fish functional community composition and cormorant predation on aquatic food web structure, biodiversity and functioning.

Martijn Bezemer - NIOO (The Netherlands)

Ellen Decaestecker – KULeuven Campus Kortrijk (Belgium)

Luc De Meester – KULeuven (Belgium)

Sebastian Diehl – Umea University (Sweden)

Diego Fontaneto - Instituto per lo Studio degli Ecosistemi (Italy)

Helmut Hillebrand - Ossietsky University (Germany)

Erik Jeppesen - Aarhus University (Denmark)

Blake Mathews – EAWAG (Switzerland)

Spiros Papakostas - Turku University (Finland)

Pedro Peres-Neto - UQAM (Canada)

Björn Ral - iDiv (Germany)

Jon Shurin – UC San Diego (USA)

Koen Verhoeven - NIOO (The Netherlands)

 

For a complete list: see my ResearcherID

Bannar-Martin, K., C. Kremer, M. Ernest, M. Leibold, H. Auge, J. Chase, S.A.J. Declerck, N. Eisenhauer, W. Harpole, H. Hillebrand, F. Isbell, T. Koffel, S. Larsen, A. Narwani, J. Petermann, C. Roscher, J. Sarmento Cabral and S. Supp. 2018. Integrating community assembly and biodiversity reveals new dimensions of ecosystem function: the Community Assembly and the Functioning of Ecosystems (CAFE) approach. Ecology Letters 21: 167–180

Teurlincx, S., M. Velthuis, D. Seroka, L. Govaert, E. van Donk, D.B. Van de Waal and S.A.J. Declerck. 2017. Species sorting and stoichiometric plasticity control community C:P ratio of  first order aquatic consumers. Ecology Letters 20:751-760.

Papakostas, S., E. Michaloudi, K. Proios, M. Brehm, L. Verhage, J. Rota, C. Peña, G. Stamou, V. L. Pritchard, D. Fontaneto and S.A.J. Declerck. 2016. Integrative taxonomy recognizes evolutionary units despite widespread mitonuclear discordance: evidence from a rotifer cryptic species complex. Systematic Biology 65: 508-524.

Declerck, S.A.J., A. Malo, S. Diehl, D. Waasdorp, K. Lemmen, K. Proios and S. Papakostas. 2015. Rapid adaptation of herbivore consumers to nutrient limitation: eco-evolutionary feedbacks to population demography and resource control. Ecology Letters 18: 553-562.

Decaestecker, E., D. Verreydt, L. De Meester and S.A.J. Declerck. 2015. Parasite and nutrient enrichment effects on Daphnia interspecific competition. Ecology 96: 1421-1430.

Van de Waal, D.B., V.H. Smith, S.A.J. Declerck, E.C.M. Stam and J.J. Elser. 2014. Stoichiometric regulation of phytoplankton toxins. Ecology Letters 17: 736-742.

Declerck, S.A.J., C. Winter, J.B. Shurin, C. A. Suttle and B. Matthews. 2013. Effects of patch connectivity and heterogeneity on metacommunity structure of planktonic bacteria and viruses. ISME Journal 7: 533-542.

Liu, J., J. Soininen, B.-P. Han and S.A.J. Declerck. 2013. Effects of connectivity, dispersal directionality and functional traits on the metacommunity structure of river benthic diatoms. Journal of Biogeography 40: 2238-2248.

De Bie, T., L. De Meester, L. Brendonck, K. Martens, B. Goddeeris, D. Ercken, H. Hampel, L. Denys, L. Vanhecke, K. Van der Gucht, J. Van Wichelen, W. Vyverman and S.A.J. Declerck. 2012. Body size and dispersal mode as key traits determining metacommunity structure of aquatic organisms. Ecology Letters 15: 740-747.

Verreydt, D., L. De Meester, E. Decaestecker, M.-J. Villena, K. van der Gucht, P. Vanormelingen, W. Vyverman and S.A.J. Declerck. 2012. Dispersal-mediated trophic interactions can generate apparent patterns of dispersal limitation in aquatic metacommunities. Ecology Letters 15: 218–226.

Declerck, S.A.J., J.S. Coronel, P. Legendre and L. Brendonck. 2011. Scale dependency of processes structuring metacommunities of cladocerans in temporary pools of High-Andes wetlands. Ecography 34: 296-305.

Declerck, S., M. Vanderstukken, A. Pals, K. Muylaert, and L. de Meester. 2007. Plankton biodiversity along a gradient of productivity and its mediation by macrophytes. Ecology 88:2199-2210.

Van der Gucht, K., K. Cottenie, K. Muylaert, N. Vloemans, S. Cousin, S. Declerck, E. Jeppesen, J. M. Conde-Porcuna, K. Schwenk, G. Zwart, H. Degans, W. Vyverman, and L. De Meester. 2007. The power of species sorting: Local factors drive bacterial community composition over a wide range of spatial scales. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 104:20404-20409.

Declerck, S., J. Vandekerkhove, L. Johansson, K. Muylaert, J. M. Conde-Porcuna, K. Van der Gucht, C. Perez-Martinez, T. Lauridsen, K. Schwenk, G. Zwart, W. Rommens, J. Lopez-Ramos, E. Jeppesen, W. Vyverman, L. Brendonck, and L. De Meester. 2005. Multi-group biodiversity in shallow lakes along gradients of phosphorus and water plant cover. Ecology 86:1905-1915.