BIodiversity and BioGEochemistry of Riverine landscapes
BIGER on Bluesky
Biger in the News
BIGER at the 40th Annual Meeting of the German Limnological Society (DGL), 8–12 September 2025, Goethe-Universität Frankfurt
At this year’s DGL conference, BIGER team members presented new research on restoration and connectivity in riverine ecosystems.
Anna-Lisa Dittrich presented “Waves under control? Morphological restoration as a strategy to mitigate navigation-induced disturbances,” with contributions from BIGER colleagues Prof. Dr. Thomas Hein, Dr. Olena Bilous, Dr.Andrea Funk, Dr.Paul Meulenbroek, and Dr.Elisabeth Bondar-Kunze, alongside external partners.
Johannes Kowal presented “Connectivity loss in river networks: insights into longitudinal, lateral and temporal dimensions,” with contributions from BIGER colleagues Prof. Dr. Thomas Hein and Dr.Andrea Funk, in collaboration with external partners.
These talks highlight the active involvement of BIGER researchers in advancing knowledge on restoration strategies and connectivity in freshwater systems.
Geographies of a Changing Europe, 8 – 11 September 2025, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna
At the 10th EUGEO Congress “Geographies of a Changing Europe” (8–11 September 2025, Vienna, Austria), Dr Ronald Pöppl delivered a talk on “DANube SEdiment Restoration (DANSER): Towards deployment and upscaling of sustainable sediment management across the Danube River basin (The Upper Danube case).” The presentation was co-authored by several researchers, including BIGER team members Prof. Dr. Thomas Hein, Dr. Sonia Steffany Recinos Brizuela and Johannes Kowal, who made substantial contributions to the work.
3rd International Conference on Sustainability in Hydropower (SUSHP 2025), 2–5 September 2025, BOKU University, Vienna, Austria
Our working group actively contributed to SUSHP 2025. Priv.-Doz. Dr. Daniel S. Hayes served on the Local Organizing Committee and chaired the International Scientific Committee. He is currently the lead editor of a special journal collection in Environmental Management, dedicated to publishing actionable, peer-reviewed contributions from the conference.
PhD student Anthony Basooma presented on “Trends in the loss of longitudinal connectivity of the Nile River Basin due to hydropower dams,” and “Hydropower dams and other ecological stressors variably affect river catchments in Europe” while PhD student Johannes Kowal shared work on “River network connectivity in Austria: A detailed status quo assessment, changes over time, and implications for more sustainable hydropower generation.” Deputy of working group leader Dr. Elisabeth Bondar-Kunze delivered a talk on “Hydropeaking-Induced Habitat Instability and Algal Community Shifts: A Case Study from the River Salzach (Austria).” Overall, we had a wonderful time together, exchanging scientific insights and fostering collaboration.
Austria Among Europe’s Leaders in Danube Research and Innovation
„With our Danube projects, Austria is one of the leading European contributors,“ said Innovation Minister Peter Hanke of the Federal Ministry for Innovation, Mobility, and Infrastructure. On August 25, the Minister visited several initiatives along the Danube east of Vienna, including the Fischa river mouth, Dynamic LIFE Lines Danube, MERLIN, LIFE WILDisland, the Bad Deutsch-Altenburg pilot project, and the fish monitoring project of BOKU’s Institute for Hydrobiology and Water Management, which is carried out within the Christian Doppler Laboratory MERI. BIGER members are actively involved in a number of these projects and contribute considerably to their success.
BIGER Group: Coordinating Austria’s Role in DANUBIUS-RI
BOKU University leads Austria’s contribution to the European research infrastructure DANUBIUS-RI (ERIC) via the „Upper Danube Austria“ supersite. The region, which covers the Upper Danube, its floodplains, and pre-Alpine rivers, allows for multidisciplinary research into freshwater ecosystems and their management in the face of climate and land-use change.
The supersite is led by Univ.Prof. Dr. Thomas Hein, the BIGER group’s leader, and its operations are coordinated by Priv.Doz. Dr. Daniel S. Hayes, another BIGER member. Their efforts ensure that Austria’s contribution to DANUBIUS-RI results in strong strategies for managing freshwater ecosystems throughout times of global change.
Read the full paper here: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00027-025-01219-6
ORF Article
Prof. Dr. Thomas Hein and Anna-Lisa Dittrich shared their expertise and insights on the ecological effects of ship-generated waves in the Danube and inland waters. They gave interviews for the ORF article, explaining how shoreline algae, plants, and juvenile fish are affected by these waves. Our team is very happy and grateful to have such knowledgeable colleagues.
https://science.orf.at/stories/3231254/
BIGER at the 14th Symposium for European Freshwater Sciences SEFS 14. Preserve Freshwater, Advance Science, and Leave Hope for Tomorrow!
Our working group attended an outstanding conference focusing on freshwater ecosystems, which took place at Bolu Abant Izzet Baysal University in Bolu, Turkey, from 20 to 25 July 2025.
The event provided a fantastic opportunity to hear from world-renowned plenary speakers and to engage with fellow scholars, who presented their latest findings and ideas. The conference aimed to foster collaboration among researchers, professors and scientists to promote innovation and advancement in future studies. One of the main topics discussed was the conservation of freshwater systems, an issue that is becoming increasingly important in modern ecological studies.
A new book is out! The Danube River and the Western Black Sea Coast: Complex Transboundary Management.
We are proud to announce the release of The Danube River and the Western Black Sea Coast: Complex Transboundary Management as part of the renowned Elsevier series, Ecohydrology from Catchment to Coast, which focuses on the world’s largest rivers. This volume is edited by the internationally recognised experts Jürg Bloesch, Bernd Cyffka, Thomas Hein, Cristina Sandu, and Nike Sommerwerk.
The book focuses on the catchment area of the Danube, the second longest river in Europe, and the adjacent Western Black Sea coast. It presents the complex interplay between natural and social processes, biodiversity issues, and the intricate links between sea and river.
Prof. Dr. Thomas Hein is one of the editors and authors of the book, and other group members, Dr Andrea Funk and Dr Martin Tschikof, contributed chapters as authors.
More details can be found here:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/book/9780443186868/the-danube-river-and-the-western-black-sea-coast
IHG is leading the environmental DNA (eDNA) activities for JDS5, the largest river monitoring campaign in Europe. We’re proud that our team member, Dr. Paul Meulenbroek, is in charge of eDNA for fish. The sampling campaign is currently ongoing along the entire Danube River — from the source to the mouth, covering ~3,000 km — and around 300 samples are expected to be collected in just three weeks! A major step toward understanding and protecting biodiversity in one of Europe’s most important river systems.
Exploring Floodplain Ecology: An International Summer School with Hands-On Participation from Our Team.
The CEEPUS–EcoManAqua International Summer School “Floodplain Ecology” was attended by members of the BIGER working group from July 7–11, 2025, at the University of J. J. Strossmayer in Osijek and Kopački Rit. Prof. Thomas Hein gave lectures on floodplain ecology and Dr. Olena Bilous gave a presentation on the ecology of algae, as part of the HR–AT (Croatia–Austria, AT-1101-09-2425) collaboration. Our students actively participated in the program as well: master’s student Nadija Čehajić and doctoral student Bhargavi Nerikar. The school provided students with practical experience in river-floodplain ecology, biodiversity, and conservation.
