Check our
Research Projects
Our research projects lie at the intersection of theory, application, and across ecological and evolutionary disciplines. Through a blend of in-silico simulations, lab work, and data analysis, we aim to uncover new insights into biodiversity dynamics under global change.
Discover
Demochange
Biodiversity Crisis
Addressing the decline of global biodiversity is among the most urgent challenges society faces. However, our understanding of which species are most susceptible to population declines under environmental pressures, such as climate change, remains limited. This knowledge gap stems from the fact that many studies investigating these declines span only a few years or decades and are often confined to a single geographic region.
Avian Epochs
DEMOCHANGE, funded by the Independent Research Fund Denmark proposes to elucidate the demographic history, over the last million years, of >100 strategically selected avian species. These species inhabit different biomes (from the tropics to the poles) and represent a variety of life-history strategies and ecological traits. We l (a) reconstruct the demographic history under past climate change for these species, (b) identify the role of life-history strategies and species traits to explain different demographic responses across species, and (c) provide baselines, trends, and relative magnitude for population dynamics under climate change.
Timeless Ecology
Although these studies provide valuable information on climate responses over short time scales, we continue to lack comprehensive insights into biodiversity responses over more extended periods and prior to the pervasive impacts of human activity on the planet.
Project Synergy
While our work will build upon data generated from the B10k Genome Project, Project DEMOCHANGE is a stand-alone enterprise funded by the Independent Research Fund Denmark (https://macroecology.ku.dk/news/2018/6-million-dkk-to-understand-birds-reaction-to-climate-change/) and involves both its own full-time research staff and the expertise of a unique set of international researchers.
Meet
The team
DEMOCHANGE is lead by PI´s Nogués-Bravo and Guojie Zhang and incorporates a number of leading scientists located in 3 different continents:
Ryan Germain (University of Copenhagen, Denmark)
Gary Graves (Smithsonian Institution USA)
Jon Fjeldsa (University of Copenhagen, Denmark)
Joe Tobias (Imperial College, UK)
Fumen Lei (Chinese Academic of Sciences, China)
Pete Hosner (University of Copenhagen Denmark)
Carsten Rahbek (University of Copenhagen Denmark)
Tom Gilbert (University of Copenhagen)
Check
The publications
Changes in the functional diversity of modern bird species over the last million years
Germain RR, Feng S, Buffan L, Carmona CP, Chen G, Graves GR, Tobias JA, Rahbek C, Lei F, Fjeldså J, Hosner PA, Gilbert MTP, Zhang G, Nogués-Bravo D. (2023). Changes in the functional diversity of modern bird species over the last million years. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2023. Feb 14;120(7):e220194511. Read more.
Species-specific traits mediate avian demographic responses under past climate change
Germain RR et al. (2023). Species-specific traits mediate avian demographic responses under past climate change. Nature Ecology and Evolution. 2023. Read more.