2011 – present Senior Scientist at the Institute for Limnology and head of the working group ‘Ciliate ecology and taxonomy’

2000 – 2011 Post Doc Research Associate at the Institute of Ecology at the Leopold-Franzens-University Innsbruck (LFUI), Austria

2000 Guest researcher at the Institute of Zoology in the Lab of Prof. Wilhelm Foissner, University of Salzburg, Austria

1998 – 2000 Doctoral thesis at the Institute of Zoology & Limnology at the LFUI, Austria

1990 – 1998 Diploma in Biology, branch ecology, elective subject limnology at the Institute of Zoology & Limnology at the LFUI, Austria

My research group focuses on ciliate ecology, biodiversity and taxonomy in alpine and subalpine lakes. To understand the autecology of ciliates in planktonic food webs, we study these protists on an alpha-taxonomic level including morphological and molecular methods. At present, we observe and identify photoprotective strategies (mycosporine-like amino acids, DNA-damage and repair) in ciliates especially from transparent alpine lakes.

Cooperation partners:
Michaela Strüder-Kypke (Guelph, Canada, FWF-project P210130-B03)
Ruben Sommaruga (Innsbruck, Austria, FWF-project P210130-B03)
Eugen Rott (Innsbruck, Austria, FWF-project P210130-B03)
Barbara Tartarotti (Innsbruck, Austria)
Thorsten Stoeck (Kaiserslautern, Germany)
Hans-Werner Breiner (Kaiserslautern, Germany)
Jens Boenigk (Essen, Germany)
Thomas Posch (Zürich, Switzerland)
Michaela Salcher (Zürich, Switzerland)

Ulrike Scheffel (Technical assistant)

Barbara Kammerlander (Ph.D. student, DOC-fFORTE fellowship and FWF-project P21013-B03, co-supervisor Ruben Sommaruga)

Daniela Pöll (Master student)

Geoffrey Ong’ondo (Ph.D. student, Egerton University, Kenia, ÖAD and DAAD fellowships, supervisor: Jens Boenigk, University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany)

‘Ultraviolet radiation effects to planktonic freshwater ciliates: an assessment of photoprotection and repair strategies’ funded by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), P21013-B03, February 2009 – January 2013 Abstract

2011

Sonntag B, Summerer M, Sommaruga R 2011 Are freshwater mixotrophic ciliates less sensitive to solar UV radiation than heterotrophic ones? J Euk Microbiol 58:196-202 PDF

Sonntag B, Summerer M, Sommaruga R 2011 Factors involved in the distribution pattern of ciliates in the water column of a transparent alpine lake. J Plankton Res 33:541-546 PDF Cover

2009

Sommaruga R, Sonntag B 2009 Photobiological aspects of the mutualistic association between Paramecium bursaria and Chlorella. In: Endosymbionts of Paramecium (M Fujishima, Ed.), Microbiology Monographs 12, Springer Verlag, Berlin, Germany, 111-130 PDF

Summerer M, Sonntag B, Hörtnagl P, Sommaruga R 2009 Symbiotic ciliates receive protection against UV damage from their algae: A test with Paramecium bursaria and Chlorella. Protist 160:233-243 mail

2008

Sonntag B, Strüder-Kypke MC, Summerer M 2008 Uroleptus willii nov. sp., a euplanktonic freshwater ciliate (Dorsomarginalia, Spirotrichea, Ciliophora) with algal symbionts: morphological description including phylogenetic data of the small subunit rRNA gene sequence and ecological notes. Denisia 23:279-288 PDF

Summerer M, Sonntag B, Sommaruga R 2008 Ciliate-symbiont specificity of freshwater endosymbiotic Chlorella (Trebouxiophyceae, Chlorophyta). J Phycol 44:77-87 mail

2007

Sonntag B, Summerer M, Sommaruga R 2007 Sources of mycosporine-like amino acids in planktonic Chlorella-bearing ciliates (Ciliophora). Freshwater Biol 52:1476-1485 PDF

Summerer M, Sonntag B, Sommaruga R 2007 An experimental test of the symbiosis specificity between the ciliate Paramecium bursaria and strains of the unicellular green alga Chlorella. Environ Microbiol 9:2117-2122 PDF

Posch T, Mindl B, Horňák K, Jezbera J, Salcher MM, Sattler B, Sonntag B, Vrba J, Šimek K 2007 Biomass reallocation within freshwater bacterioplankton induced by manipulating phosphorous availability and grazing. Aquat Microb Ecol 49:223-232 PDF

Salcher MM, Hofer J, Horňák K, Jezbera J, Sonntag B, Vrba J, Šimek K, Posch T 2007 Modulation of microbial predator-prey dynamics by phosphorous availability. Part II: Growth patterns and survival strategies of bacterial phylogenetic clades. FEMS Microbiol Ecol 60:40-50 PDF

2006

Sonntag B, Posch T, Klammer S, Teubner K, Psenner R 2006 Phagotrophic ciliates and flagellates in an oligotrophic deep alpine lake: contrasting variability with seasons and depths. Aquat Microb Ecol 43:193-207 PDF

Pérez P, Libkind D, Diéguez MdC, Summerer M, Sonntag B, Sommaruga R, van Broock M, Zagarese HE 2006 Mycosporines from freshwater yeasts: a trophic cul-de-sac? Photochem Photobiol Sci 5:25-30 PDF

Rott E, Füreder L, Schütz C, Sonntag B, Wille A 2006 Species coexistence in contrast to competition – first evidence from biota within an extreme stream microhabitat. Proceedings of the International Association of Theoretical and Applied Limnology (SIL) 29:2321-2323 PDF

2005

Mindl B, Sonntag B, Pernthaler J, Vrba J, Psenner R, Posch T 2005 Effects of phosphorus loading on interactions of algae and bacteria: reinvestigation of the „phytoplankton-bacteria paradox“ in a continuous cultivation system. Aquat Microb Ecol 38:203-213 PDF

2004

Sonntag B, Foissner W 2004 Urotricha psenneri n. sp. and Amphileptus piger (Vuxanovici, 1962) n. comb., two planktonic ciliates (Protozoa, Ciliophora) from an oligotrophic lake in Austria. J Eukaryot Microbiol 51:670-677 mail

2002

Sonntag B, Posch T, Klammer S, Griebler C, Psenner R 2002 Protozooplankton in the deep oligotrophic Traunsee (Austria) influenced by discharges of soda and salt industries. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution: Focus 2:211-226 mail

Griebler C, Sonntag B, Mindl B, Posch T, Klammer S, Psenner R 2002 Assessment of the ecological integrity of Traunsee (Austria) via analysis of sediments and benthic microbial communities. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution: Focus 2:33-62 mail

Klammer S, Posch T, Sonntag B, Griebler C, Mindl B, Psenner R 2002 Dynamics of bacterial abundance, biomass, activity, and community composition in the oligotrophic Traunsee and the Traun River (Austria). Water, Air, and Soil Pollution Focus 2:137-163 mail

2001

Posch T, Jezbera J, Vrba J, Šimek K, Pernthaler J Andreatta S, Sonntag B 2001 Size selective feeding in Cyclidium glaucoma (Ciliophora, Scuticociliatida) and its effects on bacterial community structure: a study from a continuous cultivation system. Microb Ecol 42:217-227 PDF

2000

Sonntag B, Posch T, Psenner R 2000 Comparison of three methods for determining flagellate abundance, cell size, and biovolume in cultures and natural freshwater samples. Arch Hydrobiol 149:337-351 mail

1999

Wille A, Sonntag B, Sattler B, Psenner R 1999 Abundance, biomass and size structure of the microbial assemblage in the high mountain lake Gossenköllesee (Tyrol, Austria) during the ice-free period. J Limnol 58:117-126 PDF

Posch T, Šimek K, Vrba J, Pernthaler J, Nedoma J, Sattler B, Sonntag B, Psenner R 1999 Predator-induced changes of bacterial size-structure and productivity studied on an experimental microbial community. Aquat Microb Ecol 18:235-246 PDF

Pfister G, Sonntag B, Posch T 1999 Comparison of a direct live count and an improved quantitative protargol stain (QPS) in determining abundance and cell volumes of pelagic freshwater protozoa. Aquat Microb Ecol 18: 95-103 PDF

Popular scientific contributions
Sonntag B 2010 „Hochalpiner Sonnenschutz“ (Zukunft Forschung, 01/10, p. 14-15) PDF

2010 Award of the ‘Foundation of the South Tyrolian Savings Bank’ dedicated to R. Sommaruga for the publication: Sommaruga R, Sonntag B 2009 Photobiological aspects of the mutualistic association between Paramecium bursaria and Chlorella. In: Endosymbionts of Paramecium (M Fujishima, Ed.), Microbiology Monographs 12, Springer Verlag, Berlin, Germany, 111-130

2009 ‘Kanadapreis’ of the ‘Canadian studies centre of the LFUI’ for the publication: Sonntag B, Strüder-Kypke MC, Summerer M 2008 Uroleptus willii nov. sp., a euplanktonic freshwater ciliate (Dorsomarginalia, Spirotrichea, Ciliophora) with algal symbionts: morphological
description including phylogenetic data of the small subunit rRNA gene sequence and ecological notes. Denisia 23:279-288

2007 Award of the ‘Theodor Körner Fonds zur Förderung von Wissenschaft und Kunst der Kammer für Arbeiter und Angestellte’ for the project ‚Ciliates in Piburgersee’

2006 Special science award of the province of Vorarlberg, Austria

2006 Grant for my Ph.D. thesis from the province of Vorarlberg

2005 ‘Dr. Otto-Seibert-Award to fund scientific publications at the LFUI’ for the publication: Sonntag B, Foissner W 2004 Urotricha psenneri n. sp. and Amphileptus piger (Vuxanovici, 1962) n. comb., two planktonic ciliates (Protozoa, Ciliophora) from an oligotrophic lake in Austria. J Eukaryot Microbiol 51:670-677

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