Göttinger Graduiertenzentrum für Neurowissenschaften, Biophysik und Molekulare Biowissenschaften

Prof. Dr. Stefan Scheu


  • 1979–1986: Study of Biology at the University of Tübingen and Göttingen, Germany
  • 1986: Diploma in Biology at the University of Göttingen, Germany
  • 1989: Doctorate in Biology at the University of Göttingen, Germany
  • 1997: Habilitation at the University of Göttingen, Germany
  • 1992–1993: Postdoc at the University of Calgary, Canada
  • 1997–2008: Professor of Zoology and Ecology, Darmstadt University of Technology, Germany
  • Since 2008: Professor of Animal Ecology and Head of the Animal Ecology Group at the Johann Friedrich Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology at the University of Göttingen, Germany
  • 2012-2024: speaker of the Collaborative Research Centre ‘Ecological and Socioeconomic Functions of Tropical Lowland Rainforest Transformation Systems (Sumatra, Indonesia)’ (SFB 990/EFForTS)



Major Research Interests

My research work focuses on belowground communities and aims at better understanding structuring forces in soil animal communities and interrelationships between the below- and aboveground system of terrestrial ecosystems. Further, I am investigating evolutionary processes in soil animal communities, in particular the evolution of sex and parthenogenesis. A wide spectrum of animal groups is investigated, with a focus on oribatid mites (Oribatida, Acari), springtails (Collembola, Insecta), earthworms (Lumbricidae, Oligochaeta) and spiders (Araneida, Chelicerata). Methods include the quantitative measurement of density and biomass of soil animal populations and microorganisms, the analysis of natural variations in stable isotope ratios (13C, 15N) and the use of lipids, amino acids and gene fragments as markers for understanding the structure of food webs.
For studying interrelationships between the below- and aboveground system we investigate interactions mediated by changes in plant growth (decomposer - plant - herbivore pathway) and interactions mediated by generalist predators (decomposer - generalist predator - herbivore pathway). Methods include microcosm and perturbation experiments, use of stable isotopes, analyses of microbial communities and analysis of the chemical and genetic response of plants to rhizosphere interactions.
Studies on evolutionary processes in soil animals aim at a better understanding of the factors responsible for the high frequency of parthenogenetic reproduction in soil. In particular we focus on oribatid mites because of their exceptional high rate of parthenogenesis and their amazing life histories.

Homepage Department/Research Group
http://www.uni-goettingen.de/animal-ecology


Selected Recent Publications


  • Potapov AM, Drescher J, Darras K, Wenzel A, Janotta N, Nazarreta R, Kasmiatun, Laurent V, Mawan A, Utari EH, Pollierer MM, Rembold K, Widyastuti R, Buchori D, Hidayat P, Turner E, Grass I, Westphal C, Tscharntke T, Scheu S (2024) Rainforest transformation reallocates energy from green to brown food webs. Nature 627, 116-122.
    https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07083-y
  • Pollierer M, Drescher J, Potapov A, Kasmiatun, Mawan A, Mutiari M, Nazarreta R, Hidayat P, Buchori D, Scheu S (2023) Rainforest conversion to plantations fundamentally alters energy fluxes and functions in canopy arthropod food webs. Ecology Letters 26, 1663-1675.
    https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.14276
  • Potapov AM ... Scheu S (26 authors) (2022) Feeding habits and multifunctional classification of soil-associated consumers from protists to vertebrates. Biological Reviews 97: 1057-1117. https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12832
  • Erktan A ... Scheu S (2020) The physical structure of soil: Determinant and consequence of trophic interactions. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 17: 4961–4980. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2020.107876
  • Pollierer MM … Scheu S (2019) Compound-specific isotope analysis of amino acids as a new tool to uncover trophic chains in soil food webs. Ecological Monographs 89: e01384.
    https://doi.org/10.1002/ecm.1384
  • Potapov AM ... Scheu S (2019) Uncovering the structure of soil food webs using bulk natural stable isotope composition. Biological Reviews 94: 37-59.
    https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12434