M.Sc. (Diploma) in biology (Ecology), university of Vienna (2007) Title: “Wachstum und Produktion von Leuciscus cephalus in naturnahen und restrukturierten Abschnitten von Fließgewässern”

Tutorium: Quantitative Süßwasserökologie (2006, 2007, 2009), Biologische Einführungsübungen (2007) (University of Vienna)

Project employment: FIDON (2004-2007), Monitoring of spawning areas and fish migration in river Fischa and river Danube.

Preliminary thesis title: Phytoplankton community structure and toxin production in Kenyan fish ponds

The BOMOSA project (http://bomosa.oeaw.ac.at) aims to establish cage fish farming in rural areas of East African countries (Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia). Economically important fish species such as the cichlid Tilapia sp. are filter feeders collecting (phyto)plankton from water.

An interesting question is, if there is any influence from aquaculture on water quality or vice versa an effect of water quality on the fish due to phytoplankton composition. This issue is particularly relevant as canobacteria are abundant and potentially toxin-producing in those areas. In my thesis I have two major research tasks,

1. monitoring of phytoplankton community structure in dependence on environmentalf factors such as macronutrients, temperature, etc.
2. identifying potential toxin producers in phytoplankton, with particular emphasis on the most abundant toxins the microcystins
3. identifying phylogeographical patterns in microcystin production by means of the isolation of strains of Microcystis from various climatic regions