Courses

Bayesian Generative Network

Institute Seminar by Sebastian Sosa

Date: Apr 28, 2026
Time: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM (Local Time Germany)
Speaker: Sebastian Sosa
Location: Bückle St. 5a, 78467 Konstanz
Room: Seminar room MPI-AB Bücklestrasse + Online
Host: Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior
Contact: bbarrett@ab.mpg.de

Data collection biases pose a persistent challenge in social network analysis, particularly in animal social network studies where observations are uneven, censored, and incomplete. These biases can lead to distorted network inference and incorrect conclusions about social behaviour. We present a ... [more]

Quantifying wildlife disturbance response

Institute Seminar by Theresa Kirchner

Date: May 5, 2026
Time: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM (Local Time Germany)
Speaker: Anumit Saralkar + Clément Berthelot
Theresa works as postdoc in the Collective Migration group at the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior. She applies biologging tools to a variety of tasks – from detecting heart beats in moose to quantifying foraging movement of humpback whales to collecting meteorological observations on storks.
Location: University of Konstanz
Room: ZT 702 + online
Host: Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior
Contact: hbronnvik@ab.mpg.de

How can we quantify the costs incurred by wild animals responding to anthropogenic disturbances? Declining population sizes of moose, a keystone species in boreal ecosystems, warrant a better understanding of disturbance responses in areas affected by climatic changes and expanding human influence ... [more]

Institute Seminar by Daniela Perez

Date: May 12, 2026
Time: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM (Local Time Germany)
Speaker: Daniela Perez
Location: MPI-AB Möggingen
Room: Seminar room MPI-AB Möggingen + Online
Host: Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior
Contact: kkumari@ab.mpg.de

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Forest Loss, Fragmentation and Climate Change: Mammals in a Changing Amazon Landscape

Institute Seminar by Daniel Rocha

Date: May 19, 2026
Time: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM (Local Time Germany)
Speaker: Daniel Rocha
I am a wildlife ecologist with a strong interest in the ecology of large mammals and in applying analytical methods to wildlife research. My work focuses on understanding how environmental and human related factors influence population dynamics, species distributions, and community composition across large spatial scales. As a native of Brazil, I have always been fascinated by the Amazonian biodiversity. Since 2011, I have been involved in the research and conservation of Amazonian mammals. My most recent projects explore how large terrestrial mammals are responding to rapid land use changes in the southern Brazilian Amazon, with the goal of informing more effective conservation strategies and sustainable land use planning.
Location: Bückle St. 5a, 78467 Konstanz
Room: Seminar room MPI-AB Bücklestrasse + Online
Host: Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior
Contact: lrosales@ab.mpg.de

The Amazon contains over half of the planet’s remaining tropical forests and supports a disproportionately large share of global biodiversity. Yet this ecosystem faces escalating pressures, including accelerating deforestation, widespread fire use, and the growing impacts of climate change. These ... [more]

When Fear Enters the Lab: Bullying, Power, and the Erosion of Scientific Integrity

Institute Seminar by Leah P. Hollis

Date: May 26, 2026
Time: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM (Local Time Germany)
Speaker: Leah P. Hollis
Associate Dean for Access, Equity and Inclusion; Professor of Education, Education Policy Studies Penn State University. Leah P. Hollis EdD, the inaugural Associate Dean of Access, Equity and Inclusion is national and international expert on workplace bullying. Her most recent book, Instrumental Social Justice in Higher Education Eight Surveys for Workplace Bullying and Social Justice Research which was released by Routledge publications in 2024, is an extension of her work on bullying in higher education. Other notable work includes Human Resource Perspectives on Workplace Bullying in Higher Education addresses structural problems that enable workplace bullying. She has spoken nationally and internationally to help over 350 schools address incivility on campus. Dr. Hollis has an extensive career in higher education administration and has held senior leadership and faculty posts. Dr. Hollis has taught at Northeastern University, the New Jersey Institute of Technology, and Rutgers University. Dr. Hollis received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Africana Studies from Rutgers University and her Master of Arts in English Literature from the University of Pittsburgh. She earned her Doctorate of Education from Boston University as a Martin Luther King, Jr. Fellow. Also, Dr. Hollis continued her professional training at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, Higher Education Management Development Program. She earned certification in Project Management and Executive Leadership at Stanford University and Cornell University, respectively. Hollis is also the recipient of the AERA Social Justice Award for 2024.
Location: Bückle St. 5a, 78467 Konstanz
Room: Seminar room MPI-AB Bücklestrasse + Online
Host: Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior

Workplace bullying is increasingly recognized as a serious threat to employee health and organizational sustainability, yet in the United States it is still framed primarily as a legal or interpersonal issue rather than a public health concern. Drawing on survey data from 729 higher education ... [more]

Workshop: When Work Makes You Sick - How Workplace Bullying Undermines Health, Wellness, and Human Sustainability

Workshop with Leah P. Hollis

Date: May 27, 2026
Time: 10:00 AM - 01:00 PM (Local Time Germany)
Speaker: Leah P. Hollis
Associate Dean for Access, Equity and Inclusion; Professor of Education, Education Policy Studies Penn State University. Leah P. Hollis EdD, the inaugural Associate Dean of Access, Equity and Inclusion is national and international expert on workplace bullying. Her most recent book, Instrumental Social Justice in Higher Education Eight Surveys for Workplace Bullying and Social Justice Research which was released by Routledge publications in 2024, is an extension of her work on bullying in higher education. Other notable work includes Human Resource Perspectives on Workplace Bullying in Higher Education addresses structural problems that enable workplace bullying. She has spoken nationally and internationally to help over 350 schools address incivility on campus. Dr. Hollis has an extensive career in higher education administration and has held senior leadership and faculty posts. Dr. Hollis has taught at Northeastern University, the New Jersey Institute of Technology, and Rutgers University. Dr. Hollis received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Africana Studies from Rutgers University and her Master of Arts in English Literature from the University of Pittsburgh. She earned her Doctorate of Education from Boston University as a Martin Luther King, Jr. Fellow. Also, Dr. Hollis continued her professional training at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, Higher Education Management Development Program. She earned certification in Project Management and Executive Leadership at Stanford University and Cornell University, respectively. Hollis is also the recipient of the AERA Social Justice Award for 2024.
Location: Bückle St. 5a, 78467 Konstanz
Host: Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior
Contact: mhieber@ab.mpg.de

Workplace bullying is increasingly recognized as a serious threat to employee health and organizational sustainability, yet in the United States it is still framed primarily as a legal or interpersonal issue rather than a public health concern. Drawing on survey data from 729 higher education ... [more]

Institute Seminar by Natalia Borrego

Date: Jun 2, 2026
Time: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM (Local Time Germany)
Speaker: Natalia Borrego
Location: MPI-AB Möggingen
Room: Seminar room MPI-AB Möggingen + Online
Host: Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior
Contact: lrosales@ab.mpg.de

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Studying gulls: What can we learn from these opportunistic, flexible, and explorative species?

Institute Seminar by Stefan Garthe

Date: Jun 9, 2026
Time: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM (Local Time Germany)
Speaker: Stefan Garthe
Location: MPI-AB Möggingen
Room: Seminar room MPI-AB Möggingen + Online
Host: Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior
Contact: wikelski@ab.mpg.de

Gulls are a taxonomic group of birds known for their flexible, opportunistic behaviour, their use of a wide range of habitats, and their strong response to human activities. Since 2008, we have GPS-tracked more than 800 individuals of seven gull species in Europe and three in the Americas. We have ... [more]

Keeping the Wild Working: Predators, Processes, and the Ethics of Intervention

Institute Seminar by Sam Ferreira

Date: Jun 16, 2026
Time: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM (Local Time Germany)
Speaker: Sam Ferreira
Dr Sam M. Ferreira, PhD is a senior conservation ecologist and internationally recognised authority on large mammal population dynamics, restoration ecology and evidence-based conservation management, with more than three decades of experience integrating theoretical ecology with applied conservation across Africa and the Southern Hemisphere. For the past 18 years and currently he serves as Large Mammal Ecologist in Scientific Services at South African National Parks (SANParks), where his work focuses on the spatial and temporal dynamics of large mammals, including elephants, rhinoceroses and large carnivores, directly informing adaptive management in complex protected area systems. In parallel, he is the Scientific Officer of the IUCN African Rhino Specialist Group, leading scientific reporting on rhino population trends and management and providing technical input to international policy processes, including CITES. He also holds academic appointments as Adjunct Professor at the Department of Nature Conservation and Marine Science of Cape Peninsula University of Technology and Extraordinary Professor at the Faculty of Law of North-West University, reflecting sustained engagement in postgraduate supervision, academic mentorship and research capacity development. His research has made a sustained and measurable contribution to wildlife conservation and management across southern and eastern Africa, evidenced by the authorship or co-authorship of more than 160 peer-reviewed publications that have attracted over 5 500 citations (h-index > 40). This work has advanced understanding of population dynamics, spatial ecology, and demographic drivers, improved monitoring methodologies widely applied by conservation agencies, and informed adaptive, landscape-scale management approaches in major protected areas. The consistent uptake of this research in operational planning, regional and continental assessments, advisory processes and international conservation policy debates underscores its enduring scientific, management and policy impact.
Location: Bückle St. 5a, 78467 Konstanz
Room: Seminar room MPI-AB Bücklestrasse + Online
Host: Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior
Contact: nborrego@ab.mpg.de

Large predators have a talent for stirring strong feelings. We admire them, fear them, argue about them, and then write long papers about how everything is going wrong. This talk takes a different path. It asks a simple question: what do large predators do for ecosystems—and why does that matter ... [more]

Turning tracks into risk: probabilistic estimation of bird collisions at wind turbines

Institute Seminar by Moritz Mercker

Date: Jun 23, 2026
Time: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM (Local Time Germany)
Speaker: Moritz Mercker
Moritz Mercker is a trained biologist and mathematician with a PhD in applied mathematics. Early in his career, he worked as an ornithologist on different offshore and island field stations, including the North Sea island of Trischen, where long-term bird monitoring and close exposure to protected ecosystems shaped his strong ecological perspective. He currently works at the interface of ecology, statistics, and applied mathematics. Alongside his involvement in academic research on biomathematical methods, he runs a biostatistical consultancy supporting ecological assessments and environmental decision-making. His work is driven by the conviction that biodiversity conservation and the expansion of renewable energy can and must be reconciled through rigorous, data-driven approaches.
Location: MPI-AB Möggingen
Room: Seminar room MPI-AB Möggingen + Online
Host: Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior
Contact: fiedler@ab.mpg.de

Expanding wind energy requires reliable ways to assess collision risks for birds, especially for protected species. We present a probabilistic framework that translates animal movement data into spatially explicit estimates of collision risk at wind turbines. Using GPS tracking of different breeding ... [more]

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