Master’s degree project in Conservation Biology

The degree project may comprise 30-60 credits and can be carried out in a research group at the department of Biology, or at an external institution e.g. at another faculty or elsewhere.

Prerequisites for the Master’s degree project in Conservation Biology

• 45 cr Advanced courses in Ecology including Population and Community Ecology (BIOR69) and Conservation biology (BIOR37)  
• A Bachelor’s degree including 90 cr in Cell Biology, Genetics, Microbiology, Ecology, Botany and Zoology and 7.5 cr in Statistics

Proposals for master degree projects in

Chemical Ecology and Conservation Biology

Pheromone communication in Stag beetles

The stag beetle, Lucanus cervus, is one of the largest terrestrial beetles in Europe. Despite its large size and spectacular appearance, little is known about its reproductive behaviour. Recent research has revealed that the species uses chemical cues for mate recognition, and both male- and female-produced candidate substances have been identified. Both sexes have an area of yellow setae on the femur of the first leg – “the yellow patch” – from which these substances are released.

A compound produced from the yellow patch in females elicits strong attraction in males over short distances in laboratory bioassays. The aim of this project is to evaluate this compound as a long-distance attractant under field conditions, and the potential to use the substance for large-scale monitoring of stag beetles. If the compound is attractive to males in the field, mark-release-recapture experiments will be performed to study the dispersing behaviour of male stag beetles using odour-baited traps. The effect of other female-released compounds on male behaviour will also be evaluated.

Female (top) and male (middle) stag beetle, and the yellow patch (bottom) on the femur of the first leg, a structure present in both sexes of beetles, from which sex-specific pheromone components are produced

So, if you are interested in doing fieldwork in one of the most beautiful areas of Sweden – the oak landscape in Blekinge – this is a project for you! As the main part of the project will be devoted to fieldwork, you need a driving licence and a car, and preferably a place to stay in Blekinge.

Please contact Glenn Svensson if you are interested in this proposal.

Conservation Biology

Mycorrhizal fungi and insect pollinators: linking above- and below-ground ecosystem processes

Above- and below-ground organisms within terrestrial ecosystems interact in many unseen but important ways. For example, mycorrhizal fungi colonise plant roots and can increase plant uptake of essential nutrients in exchange for photosynthetically derived carbon. This can alter the nutritional quality of above-ground plant resources, which has direct consequences for communities of herbivores and pollinators. In this project you will use a model system to investigate how herbivory and colonisation of an insect-pollinated plant by an arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus affects flower production, nectar and pollen quantity and quality, as well as pollination success. This project contains glasshouse, laboratory and field components. The field component is suitable from mid-May through to end of July.

Please contact Alwyn Williams if you are interested in this proposal.

Explaining the continuous decline of Pulsatilla vulgaris in Skåne

Pulsatilla vulgaris (Swedish: backsippa) is a well known plant growing in moderately fertile grasslands and pastures. It has been shown that the species decreased by 40–60 % from the middle to the end of the 20:th century and the species is now included on the National Redlist. In 2010, all recently known populations were revisited and it was concluded that the species continuous to decrease in abundance and have gone extinct at many sites. The decline is believed to be mainly due to changes in land use, but it is not clear exactly what kinds of changes are most important. The idea of this project is to revisit both sites where the species still thrives and sites where it has recently gone extinct in order to collect more background data about the sites to make it possible to better understand the causes for the continuous decline of the species.

Please contact Torbjörn Tyler if you are interested in this proposal.

Which factors determine the species richness and distribution of bryophytes on old church-yards?

Church-yards may be important for biodiversity conservation because they commonly show an unsurpassed continuity of ”land use”, old deciduous trees and stone constructions enabling them to host relictual populations of species which are limited by dispersal in the modern continuously changing landscape. At the same time, church-yards are in many respects similar, well delimited and comparable although relatively evenly distributed throughout the country making them ideal for studies of geographic patterns of species distribution. Old deciduous trees and stones of different kinds are important substrates for many bryophytes and some rare species appear to be almost restricted to church-yards. During the ongoing inventory of the bryophyte flora of the province of Skåne, numerous church-yards have been surveyed, but many more remain and usually no data other than the plain list of species have been collected. The idea of this project is to use the lists of species collected by the above mentioned project, supplement it with additional data from more church-yards, as well as by data about the physical, biological and historical properties of the allready surveyed church-yards, with the aim of making it possible to analyse which factors are important for species richness and the distribution of individual species. Ultimately, recommendations for the attendants of the church yards may be proposed.

Please contact Torbjörn Tyler if you are interested in this proposal.

Quantifying the impact of climate change on plants

Climate change referring to increased global temperature, altered precipitation and elevated CO2 concentration will be a challenge particularly for sessile organisms, such as plants. However, not all plant species will be equally affected by climate change and non-native species are even expected to benefit from it. The aim of this project is to quantify predicted changes in plant vital rates (e.g. survival, growth, fecundity) based on the literature. For instance, you will examine how life-history, life form and invasiveness status is expected to affect plant responses to climate change.

Please contact Satu Ramula if you are interested in this proposal.

Does disturbance promote plant invasions?

Many empirical studies have detected a positive relationship between disturbance and plant invasions, while recent theoretical studies have claimed that disturbance per se does not promote plant invasions. The aim of this project is to review the literature to synthesize the role of disturbance in plant invasions. You will examine how study type (observational versus experimental), habitat type, life form and the type of disturbance affect conclusions.

Please contact Satu Ramula if you are interested in this proposal.

Moth distribution as a function of host plant distribution: using Small Pasque Flower, Pulsatilla pratensis, to map a rare geometrid moth, Horisme aquata

Please contact Lars Pettersson if you are interested in this proposal.

Clearcuts as refuges for farmland butterflies (30 cr, also available as 15 cr)

Clearcuts are getting more and more attention as refuge habitats for many butterfly species. In particular, butterflies that decrease in the farmland landscape have often colonized clearcuts. But little is known about how clearcut age influences butterfly diversity. Here, you will quantify the butterfly fauna of clearcuts of different age categories in a design which takes overall landscape variability into account. The project is suitable for June/July/August.

Please contact Lars Pettersson if you are interested in this proposal.

Host plants as a key to understanding the distribution of geometrid moths (30 cr)

The Cumbrian Umber, Horisme aquata, is a geometrid moth which is closely associated with its host plant (Pulsatilla pratensis, fältsippa). The distribution of this endangered red listed moth is restricted to Scania and Blekinge. However, despite the fact that the host plant populations are well known, no attempt has been made to use this information to map and understand the distribution and abundance of the endangered moth. In this project (suitable for a project start in April/May), you will survey Cumbrian Umber populations and relate distribution patterns to host plant abundance as well as to environmental parameters.

Please contact Lars Pettersson if you are interested in this proposal.

Where are all the moth caterpillars? (30 cr)

Many studies point towards grasslands being highly important for moth diversity. Numerous moth species pupate in the soil and birds use moth caterpillars from grassland to feed their young during peak breeding effort. Nevertheless, most studies trying to quantify the density of these moth larvae and pupae have failed. There simply hasn’t been a good way of sampling emerging noctuid moths. But now there is. In this project, you will use multiple emergence traps to quantify moth recruitment patterns from natural habitats in the Revinge area. The project is suitable for June/July/August.

Please contact Lars Pettersson if you are interested in this proposal.

Moth diversity in short rotation willow coppicing (30 cr, also available as 15 cr)

Short rotation coppicing (energiskogsodling) is abundant in the landscape but its impact on invertebrate biodiversity is little known. Coppicing is often seen as a potential problem that may lead to trivialization of the landscape. At the same time, willow (Salix) attracts numerous insects and is associated with the major peak in moth diversity during April-May. In this project, you will investigate moth diversity as a function of age and size of short rotation willow stands.

Please contact Lars Pettersson if you are interested in this proposal.

Spatial dynamics of moth diversity during willow flowering (30 cr, also available as 15 cr)

Willow (Salix) flowering is associated with a peak in moth diversity in April-May. However, these patterns have rarely been investigated on a landscape scale. In this project, you will quantify spatial and temporal dynamics of larger moths in relation to host plants and landscape characteristics. The project is suitable for April/May.

Please contact Lars Pettersson if you are interested in this proposal.

Flight altitude of summertime moths (30 cr, also available as 15 cr)

Rooftop mercury lamp moth traps have recently demonstrated that a considerable number of large moths are active far above the ground level. Many of these species are typical migrants. By using a network of rooftop and ground-level trap pairs, you will be able to characterize an important but largely unknown part of the Swedish moth fauna. There will both migrants and residents and your probability of finding new species for Sweden is quite good – maybe a bonus? The project is suitable for June/July/August.

Please contact Lars Pettersson if you are interested in this proposal.

Bumblebees as subject för master thesis (.pdf)

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