Courses

Bonobo Stories - Fotografien von Christian Ziegler aus dem Salonga Nationalpark

Ausstellung

Start: Jan 19, 2026 09:00 AM (Local Time Germany)
End: Apr 17, 2026 05:30 PM
Location: WissenschaftsForum, Markgrafenstr. 37, 10117 Berlin-Mitte
Topic: Open day
Contact: mpgberlin@gv.mpg.de

Eine Ausstellung des Max-Planck-Instituts für Verhaltensbiologie. Fotografien aus dem LuiKotale-Bonobo-Projekt und Informationsstationen zur modernen Verhaltensforschung, die heute digitale Methoden nutzt. [more]

Do animals understand death

Institute Seminar by Susana Monsó

Date: Apr 14, 2026
Time: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM (Local Time Germany)
Speaker: Susana Monsó
Susana Monsó is associate professor of philosophy in the Department of Logic, History, and Philosophy of Science at the National Distance Education University. Her work focuses on the socio-cognitive capacities of animals and their ethical implications. She has published in leading journals in her field, such as Philosophical Quarterly, British Journal for the Philosophy of Science, and Philosophy of Science. Her book, Playing Possum: How Animals Understand Death (2024, Princeton University Press) was recommended in The New York Times and The Guardian and selected as one of the best books of 2024 by The New Yorker.
Location: Bückle St. 5a, 78467 Konstanz
Room: Seminar room MPI-AB Bücklestrasse + Online
Host: Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior
Contact: zgoldsborough@ab.mpg.de

When the Virginia opossum feels threatened, she becomes paralysed, her body temperature drops, her breathing and heart rate are reduced to a minimum, her tongue turns blue, and her glands simulate the smell of rot. Despite her convincing corpse disguise, the opossum is paying close attention to her ... [more]

The ecology of collective behavior across oceanic scales

Institute Seminar by Will Oestreich

Date: Apr 21, 2026
Time: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM (Local Time Germany)
Speaker: Will Oestreich
Will Oestreich studies animal behavior in dynamic and changing ecosystems. He is a group leader in the Department of Evolutionary Biology & Environmental Studies at the University of Zurich, and an affiliated researcher with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute. Will has a particular interest in oceanic ecosystems, exploring how biophysical variation and information interact to shape behavior in the open and deep ocean. He also interrogates how we as humans can collectively understand, steward, & adapt to the changing ecosystems of which we are all a part.
Location: Bückle St. 5a, 78467 Konstanz
Room: Seminar room MPI-AB Bücklestrasse + Online
Host: Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior
Contact: spashchevskaya@ab.mpg.de

Oceanic ecosystems comprise Earth's largest living space. In these vast, fluid, and mostly dark ecosystems, resources aggregate in patchy, fleeting hotspots of biological activity. These conditions pose immense challenges both for resident lifeforms and researchers seeking to elucidate their ... [more]

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
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: Theresa Kirchner
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