Christian Rellstab

Stellenanzeige: Die Forschungseinheit Biodiversität und Naturschutzbiologie untersucht die Vielfalt des Lebens, von der genetischen Diversität bis zur Arten- und Lebensraumvielfalt sowie ihre Interaktionen. Das für mehr als vier Jahre und vom BAFU finanzierte Projekt TreeGD untersucht die genetische Vielfalt und das Anpassungspotenzial von Haupt- und Nebenbaumarten in Schweizer Generhaltungsgebieten, inklusive ihres Saatgutes. Für dieses Projekt sucht die Gruppe Ökologische Genetik per 1. Januar 2026 oder nach Vereinbarung befristet für 2 Jahre (mit Option auf Verlängerung), eine/-n motivierte/-n Postdoktorand/-in in ökologischer Genomik 80% (w/m/d) Sie planen und unterstützen die Beprobung von Baummaterial für die DNA-Extraktion und koordinieren die Laborarbeit. Sie werten die genomweiten Sequenzdaten von je 500 Bäumen von fünf Baumarten aus und berechnen Indikatoren wie genetische Vielfalt, Differenzierung und potenzielle Angepasstheit. Daraus leiten Sie praktische Empfehlung für Schweizer Generhaltungsgebiete und die Saatgutgewinnung ab. In Zusammenarbeit mit den Projektpartner/-innen publizieren Sie die Ergebnisse in wissenschaftlichen und umsetzungsorientierten Zeitschriften und präsentieren die Erkenntnisse an Veranstaltungen mit der Forstpraxis und an inter-/nationalen wissenschaftlichen Fachtagungen. Sie verfügen über ein Doktorat in Biologie, Forst- oder Umweltnaturwissenschaften und gute Kenntnisse in ökologischer Genetik sowie Evolutionsbiologie, falls möglich bei Waldbäumen. Sie sind vertraut mit genomweiten Analysen auf Hochleistungsrechnern und sehr kompetent in Populationsgenetik und Landschaftsgenomik. Sie schreiben und sprechen fliessend in mindestens einer Schweizer Landessprache sowie Englisch. Sie besitzen einen Führerausweis Kat. B und arbeiten gerne im Freien, auch unter schwierigen Bedingungen. Sie sind teamfähig und kommunikativ, und Sie arbeiten strukturiert und selbstständig.

#PostDoc Alert! PhD in #Biologie, #Forstwissenschaften oder #Umweltnaturwissenschaften🌲? Gute Kenntnisse in Evolutionsbiologie und sehr kompetent in #Populationsgenetik und #Landschaftsgenomik🧬? Wir bieten eine #PostDoc Stelle in ökologischer Genomik: apply.refline.ch/273855/1782/... #ScienceJobs

Second Day starts with an amazing keynote talk on genetic adaptation and phenotypic plasticity by Silvia Matesanz from URJC. Great talk Silvia! #EVOLTREE

So happy to be with European colleagues in Madrid for #EvolTREE to share new ideas, technologies, and applications of forest genetics to conservation, restoration, breeding, and much, much more

David O'Brien opens the first session ("New Tools for Science to Reach Practice") of the Joint EVOLTREE-FORGENIUS conference with an entertaining talk on how to communicate to politicians, practitioners and the public.

Delphine Grivet from the host organisation INIA-CSIC opens the Joint EVOLTREE- FORGENIUS Conference in Madrid! About 200 researchers, including many early-career scientists in the room.

The EVOLTREE-FORGENIUS Joint Conference starts tomorrow in Madrid, so much excitement in the air! It is already our 3rd Conference and we continue growing. Thanks for supporting #EVOLTREE

i am offering a post-doc position in my brand-new project TreeGD that will investigate genomic diversity of trees species in switzerland, with a special focus on gene conservation units, rare species (but not only), and seeds stands.

apply.refline.ch/273855/1782/...

Phylogeography of Arctic plants: where are we after 35 years, and where to go? The Arctic provides an excellent system to study climate change effects on geographic ranges and genetic diversity. We re-examine the large number of phylogeographic studies of Arctic plants to ass...

In memory of Richard Abbott 🌱❄ 35 years of Arctic plant phylogeography - glacial refugia, trans-oceanic dispersals, and the genomic evidence revealing their hidden histories.

www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

congrats! a must-read.

Tree evolution is surprisingly quirky! 🌳 Trees are likely ancestral in many plant groups, often re-evolve on islands, and Arabidopsis can be made tree-like by tweaking a few genes. We revisited what genes really make a tree a tree using comparative genomics. @trhvidsten.bsky.social #trees #evolution

exciting times ahead. the permanent exhibition "breaking the code" about genetic research at @wslresearch.bsky.social is opening soon!

with apprentices from ETH, we developed a computer game to assign white oak species (and their hybrids) based on leaf morphology and genetic markers.

stay tuned!

i can't answer you this question. this depends on local environmental conditions and management history. but our results suggest that oak might be able to react to climate change, whereas we have some doubts for beech.

Brand new!

Analyzing tree rings in common garden experiments in oak and beech, we show that phenotypic plasticity drives trait variation in both species. However, oak shows, in contrast to beech, also signs of adaptation and genetically-based plasticity.

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

🚨Join in when IUFRO Working Party 2.02.05 kicks off their brand-new Webinar Series:

🌲Integrating Pollen-Based Assisted Migration and Rolling- Front Landscape Breeding for Forest Adaptation under Climate Change🌳
🗓️Thursday, 25 September 2025 🕕18:00-19:00 CEST

🔗 bit.ly/46cVXaW

#ForestScience

Opportunity Calls

You have a good research idea in the field of evolutionary genetics and genomics of forest trees, but lack funding to carry it out? Leap into action with the network's research initiative, OPPORTUNITY!

The new call has been launched, deadline is 16.11.2025.

More information here:

Participatory mapping of the forest community stakeholders in Europe focusing on forest genetic resources, forest reproductive material, and protected forests The genetic diversity of forest trees, as provided by Forest Genetic Resources (FGR) and being the basis for the production of Forest Reproductive Mat…

Mapping forest stakeholders across Europe highlights conflicts and cooperation in conserving genetic diversity, managing reproductive material, and protecting forests under varying governance frameworks.

Very proud to be part of this beautiful @optforests.bsky.social paper.

#SciArt #Artshare I’m a scientific illustrator with genetics and evolution background open to commissions of infographics, illustrations, scientific figures, …

Joint EVOLTREE-FORGENIUS Conference / Third Biannual EVOLTREE Conference 18-25 November 2025, Madrid, Spain

Joint EVOLTREE-FORGENIUS Conference 2025

Call for Abstracts is now open! Deadline 30 June 2025

We invite submissions on evolutionary ecology, genomics, and adaptation in trees and associated organisms.

For more information: www.evoltree.eu/conferences/...

Find here my announcement for a 2-year post-doc position in ecological genomics of white oaks in the framework of the Horizon project OptFORESTS. I am looking for somebody with strong skills in bioinformatics, landscape genomics, forest genomics, GWAS, and population genetic simulations.

We are pleased to invite you to the upcoming EvolTree-FORGENIUS Joint Conference "Integrative Diversity of Forest Ecosystems" , which will take place in Madrid, Spain, from 18 to 21 November 2025.

You can find all information and the registration here:
www.evoltree.eu/conferences/...

Do you want to learn about methods for detecting genes involved in local adaptation and for predicting maladaptation to future climate? There are still a few slots left in SSMPG2025 course in the French Alps.

Very proud to be part of such a great team of teachers.

ssmpg2025.sciencesconf.org

Utilisation optimale du matériel forestier de reproduction des espèces de chênes indigènes La diversité génétique est essentielle pour l'adaptation des populations d'arbres. Un catalogue de questions aide à utiliser de manière optimale le matériel forestier de reproduction. Les aspects écol...

Notre guide pratique (WSL Bericht) sur «l'utilisation optimale du matériel forestier de reproduction des espèces de chênes indigènes» est aintenant disponible en français:

@wslresearch.bsky.social

Four outreach publications in one day... Only possible in Switzerland.

Check our chapter on genetic diversity in the latest Swiss Forest Report

www.bafu.admin.ch/bafu/en/home...

i guess they are... here we looked at natural, but managed populations.

Optimale Nutzung von forstlichem Vermehrungsgut der einheimischen Eichenarten Genetische Vielfalt ist essenziell für die Anpassung von Baumpopulationen. Ein Fragenkatalog hilft, forstliches Vermehrungsgut optimal zu nutzen. Ökologische, organisatorische und produktionstechnisch...

out now! instructions for practice on the optimal use of forest genetic resources in white oak species native to switzerland. a @wslresearch.bsky.social product, available only in german (french version in preparation).

www.wsl.ch/en/publicati...

Soil properties – water availability and pH – are strongly associated to the spatial distribution of two hybridizing and sympatric oak species (Quercus spp) at local stand scale.

w/@felix-zimmermann.bsky.social, @christian-rellstab.bsky.social

doi.org/10.1111/eva.70076

new paper in @evolappjournal.bsky.social with @felix-zimmermann.bsky.social !

Soil properties – water availability and pH – are strongly associated to the spatial distribution of two hybridizing and sympatric oak species (Quercus spp) at local stand scale.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

The ETH/ @evoltree.bsky.social block course "Genomics of Environmental Adaptation" at @wslresearch.bsky.social successfully ended on Friday afternoon. Thanks to everybody who made it possible!

of course it should say „adaptation“…

Detecting genomic signatures of environmental adaption, an ETH/ @evoltree.bsky.social block course, running now with full intensity at @wslresearch.bsky.social. Great students, motivated instructors, and hot computers.