Marco Ferrante, PhD

​​​I am a terrestrial ecologist with substantial international experience in temperate agroecosystems. During my PhD (2013-2017, Aarhus University), I worked within the framework of sustainable agriculture and contributed to developing the artificial caterpillar method to quantify invertebrate and vertebrate predation rates in different habitats. My research focuses on key ecological processes such as pollination, herbivory, seed predation, and scavenging, which can lead to ecosystem services and disservices.

 

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My research background includes studying the effects of urbanisation on animal communities and investigating the impact of soil pollution on arthropod diversity and associated ecological processes. I have also undertaken long research stays as a visiting PhD student in Argentina (INTA Manfredi), and as a postdoctoral researcher in Israel (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev) and Portugal (University of the Azores, Terceira Island).

 

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Since May 2022, I have been a postdoctoral researcher in the Functional Agrobiodiversity & Agroecology group (University of Göttingen). My current interests include investigating the influence of natural field margins on arthropod and plant communities, promoting non-lethal methods to study arthropods, and assessing how different stakeholders value biodiversity in agricultural landscapes. Ultimately, I aim to contribute to farmland biodiversity conservation and design sustainable agricultural landscapes.