Frank Pennekamp

Principal Investigator

My background is in conservation biology, but for my PhD with Nicolas Schtickzelle, I have shifted to microbial model systems to address fundamental questions in ecology and evolutionary biology. My PhD was focused on the genetic and environmental drivers of movement and dispersal of Tetrahymena thermophila ciliates.

From 2014 to 2019, I worked as a postdoctoral researcher with Owen Petchey on understanding the effects of warming on community structure and composition, and the emerging field of ecological predictability.

Research Interests

  • Ecological forecasting
  • Species interactions and food webs
  • Movement and dispersal ecology
  • Multiple stressors

Experience

University of Zurich
2019 - present Independent group leader

University of Zurich
2014 - 2019 Postdoctoral researcher
Advisor: Prof. Owen Petchey

Education

Université catholique de Louvain
PhD in Biology
Title: Swimming with ciliates: dispersal and movement ecology of Tetrahymena thermophila Advisors: Nicolas Schtickzelle
Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
Granted January 2014

University of Trier
Diploma in Applied Biogeography
Title: The larval ecology and dispersal behavior of the Spanish Fritillary butterfly (Euphydryas desfontainii) in SW-Portugal. Trier, Germany
Granted March 2009