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Julia Dieskau

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Plant Ecology work group

Research focus

“Assembly of native and exotic grassland communities – the role of mutual invasibility, priority effects and time”

My research project aims to understand under which circumstances priority effects of earlier arriving plant species are more important than mutual invasibility (i.e. the “rare species advantage”) and vice versa. I expect coexistence and therefore mutual invasibility should to be of higher importance among native species, in particular among different functional groups, while interspecific priority effects should be more important between invasive exotic species and native species, and within the same plant functional group of either native or exotic species.

To test my hypotheses I will conduct field and greenhouse experiment with native and exotic plant species of different functional groups (grasses, herbs and legumes). Furthermore I will include a fungicide treatment that allows me investigate to role of soil fungi and therefore plant-soil feedbacks.

Education

Since 2017:

PhD student at Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg

PhD thesis: „Assembly of native and exotic grassland communities – the role of mutual invasibility, priority effects and time“

Supervisors: Prof. Isabell Hensen, Dr. Harald Auge

2012-2016:

Master of Science Biology, Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg

Master thesis: "The role of soil biota in the invasion process of Verbascum thapsus in New Zealand: A comparison of native and invasive populations."

Supervisors: Prof. Alexandra Erfmeier, Prof. Helge Bruelheide

2012-2013

Study abroad, Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Lincoln University, New Zealand

2009-2012

Bachelor of Science Biology, Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg

Bachelor thesis: “Adaptation of Echium vulgare to simulated UV-B stress: morphological and physiological comparison of native and invasive populations.”

Supervisors: Prof. Alexandra Erfmeier, Prof. Helge Bruelheide

Publications

Dieskau, J., Bruelheide, H., Gutknecht, J., Erfmeier, A.(2020). Biogeographic differences in plant–soil biota relationships contribute to the exotic range expansion of Verbascum thapsus. Ecology and Evolution, 10(23), 13057–13070. doi:10.1002/ece3.6894.   

Conference contributions

Dieskau, J.; Hensen, I.; Eisenhauer, N.; Gaberle, I.; Durka, W.; Lachmuth, S.; Auge, H. (2023): "Phylogenetic relationships mediate priority effects of European grassland plants". Oral presentation at the 52th Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of Germany, Austria and Switzerland (GfÖ), Leipzig.

Gaberle, I., Dieskau, J., Durka, W., Hensen, I., Auge, H. (2018): „Does phylogenetic relatedness affect the strength of priority effects in native and exotic grassland species?” Poster presentation at the annual iDiv conference, Leipzig

Dieskau, J., Auge, H., Hensen, I (2017): “How do priority effects and mutual invasibility of native and exotic grassland species affect plant community assembly?” Poster presentation at the annual iDiv conference, Leipzig

Dieskau, J., Bruelheide, H., Erfmeier, A. (2015): "Exotic Verbascum thapsus populations: interaction with novel soil biota communities in plant invasions?" Poster presentation at 45th Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of Germany, Austria and Switzerland, Göttingen.

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