Dr. Patrick L. Kohl
Garbenstr. 17
Room 005
Tel.: 0711 459 22484
E-mail: patrick.kohl@uni-hohenheim.de
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9278-978X
ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Patrick-L- Kohl
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=OJRuUYoAAAAJ&hl=en
office hours by appointment
Research interest
- Ecology, evolution and behaviour of social insects, especially honey bees (Apis spp.)
- Floral ecology and pollination
- Sustainable apiculture and conservation of wild bee (including Apis) populations
CV
| since 03/2024 | Postdoc at the Department of Livestock Population Genomics, University of Hohenheim (Walter Benjamin Programme of the DFG) |
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2019–2023 | Doctoral student in Biology at the Department of Animal Ecology and Tropical Biology, University of Würzburg; Fellowship of the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt Thesis: "The buzz beyond the beehive: population demography, parasite burden and limiting factors of wild-living honeybee colonies in Germany" (doi.org/10.25972/OPUS-33032) |
| 2018–2019 | Predoc at the Department of Animal Ecology and Tropical Biology, University of Würzburg |
| 2015–2018 | Master studies in Biology, University of Würzburg MSc thesis: "Pollination ecology of Clinopodium alpinum along an altitudinal gradient in the Northern Alps" |
| 2015–2018 | Three research trips as a visiting student to the honey bee lab of the National Centre for Biological Sciences in Bangalore, India; comparative studies on behavior and ecology of three Asian honey bee species |
| 2011–2014 | Bachelor studies in Biosciences, University of Münster and Universidad de Granada (Spain) BSc thesis in cooperation with the Landwirtschaftskammer NRW (Aufgabengebiet Bienenkunde): "Drone production in naturally nesting and beekeeper-managed honey bee colonies (Apis mellifera)" |
Current research project
Exploring genomic signatures of modern apiculture in the western honeybee (Apis mellifera) (funded by the DFG)
Domestication is an adaptive evolutionary process in which one species, the domesticator, manipulates the environment of a partner species, the domesticate, to retrieve a service from the latter, and the domesticate evolves towards higher fitness and higher rates of service provision in the manipulated environment. The western honeybee (Apis mellifera) is highly valued as a managed pollinator, honey producer, and model organism for neurobiology, sociobiology, and genetics. However, besides being managed in beekeeping hives since millennia, wild colonies still make up a large fraction of the world’s honeybee population. Since managed honeybees face a higher degree of exposure to the (natural) environment than other livestock species and there is limited control of gene flow between managed and wild populations, it is generally unclear whether, or to which degree, managed honeybees are under domestication. The objective of this project is to bring together paired samples of wild and managed honeybee populations from multiple regions around the world, and obtain genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) information of each population using sequencing of pools of individuals (Pool-seq). The comparison of genomic data will allow us to infer whether selection pressures under modern beekeeping management and under wild conditions differ sufficiently to produce functional (i.e., adaptive) genetic differences between managed and wild honeybee populations. The results will provide insights into whether modern apiculture can generally be regarded as a true domestication process and whether beekeeping is likely to affect the fitness of honeybees under natural conditions. This information is relevant for apiculture, wild pollinator conservation, and researchers using honeybees as a model organism.
Publications
| 2024 | Rutschmann B, Kohl PL, Seffan-Dewenter I (2024). Swarming rate and timing of unmanaged honeybee colonies (Apis mellifera carnica) in a forest environment. bioRxive Hovestadt T, Kohl PL, Mitesser O (2024). Optimal fissioning strategies of social insects with respect to colony dynamics and nest founding probability. Insectes Sociaux https://doi.org/10.1007/s00040-024-00960-9 |
| 2023 | Kohl PL (2023). The buzz beyond the beehive: population demography, parasite burden and limiting factors of wild-living honeybee colonies in Germany. Doctoral thesis University of Würzburg (doi.org/10.25972/OPUS-33032) Kohl PL, D’Alvise P, Rutschmann B, Roth S, Remter F, Steffan-Dewenter I, Hasselmann M (2023). Reduced parasite burden in feral honeybee colonies. Ecological Solutions and Evidence 4:e12264. doi.org/10.1002/2688-8319.12264 Kohl PL, Rutschmann B, Brockmann A (2023). Dance communication of giant honeybees. In: Abrol DP (ed). Role of giant honeybees in natural and agricultural systems. CRC Press. Kohl PL*, Rutschmann B*, Sikora LG, Wimmer N, Zahner V, D'Alvise P, Hasselmann M, Steffan-Dewenter I (2023). Parasites, depredators, and limited resources as potential drivers of winter mortality of feral honeybee colonies in German forests. Oecologia 202:465–480. doi.org/10.1007/s00442-023-05399-6 *equal contribution Rutschmann B, Kohl PL, Steffan-Dewenter I (2023). Foraging distances, habitat preferences and seasonal colony performance of honeybees in Central European forest landscapes. Journal of Applied Ecology 60:1056-1066. doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.14389 |
| 2022 | Kohl PL, Rutschmann B, Steffan-Dewenter I (2022). Population demography of feral honeybee colonies in central European forests. Royal Society Open Science 9: 220565. doi.org/10.1098/rsos.220565 Kohl PL & Steffan-Dewenter I (2022). Nectar robbing rather than pollinator availability constrains reproduction of a bee-flowered plant at high elevations. Ecosphere 13(6): e4077. doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4077 Rutschmann B*, Kohl PL*, Machado A, Steffan-Dewenter I (2022). Semi-natural habitats promote winter survival of wild-living honeybees in an agricultural landscape. Biological Conservation 266:109450 ttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2022.109450 *equal contribution |
| 2021 | George EA, Thulasi N, Kohl PL, Suresh S, Rutschmann B, Brockmann A (2021). Distance estimation by Asian honey bees in two visually different landscapes. Journal of Experimental Biology jeb.242404. doi.org/10.1242/jeb.242404 Kohl PL & Rutschmann B (2021). Honey bees communicate distance via non-linear waggle duration functions. PeerJ 9:e11187 DOI 10.7717/peerj.11187 doi.org/10.7717/peerj.11187 Young AM*, Kohl PL*, Rutschmann B*, Steffan-Dewenter I, Brockmann A, Dyer FC (2021). Temporal and spatial foraging patterns of three Asian honey bee species in Bangalore, India. Apidologie. doi.org/10.1007/s13592-020-00839-1 *equal contribution |
| 2020 | Kohl PL, Thulasi N, Rutschmann B, George EA, Steffan-Dewenter I, & Brockmann A (2020). Adaptive evolution of honeybee dance dialects. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 287(1922), 20200190. doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2020.0190 |
| 2019 | Cammarosano M, Weirauch K, Maruhn F, Jendritzki G, Kohl PL* (2019). They Wrote on Wax. Wax Boards in the Ancient Near East. Mesopotamia LIV (2019), 121-180. *contribution to a chapter on honey bees and traditional apiculture Requier F, Garnery L, Kohl PL, Njovu HK, Pirk CW, Crewe RM & Steffan-Dewenter I (2019). The conservation of native honey bees is crucial. Trends in ecology & evolution, 34(9), 789-798. doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2019.04.008 |
| 2018 | Rutschmann B, Kohl PL, Roth S (2018). Beelining – wie man wildlebende Honigbienen findet. Deutsches Bienenjournal 7/2018 pp.13–15 Kohl PL, Rutschmann B (2018). Versteckt und unerforscht – wildlebende Honigbienen in unseren Wäldern. Deutsches Bienenjournal 6/2018 pp.16–17 Kohl PL* & Rutschmann B* (2018). The neglected bee trees: European beech forests as a home for feral honey bee colonies. PeerJ, 6, e4602. doi.org/10.7717/peerj.4602 *equal contribution |