I have worked as a field biologist during my PhD on seed dispersal and its effect on the formation of plant communities in West Africa. However, I have more and more moved into the field of evolutionary ecology using mathematical and simulation approaches to study issues in life-history and in particular in dispersal. A focus is on understanding how environmental variability in its various expressions affects the evolution of such traits. I received my degree (Diplom) at the University of Tübingen, studied a year at Duke University and completed my PhD at the University of Würzburg. Ever since I hold a position in Würzburg leading our small team