We have a strong, versatile and internationally recognized research agenda in ecology, animal physiology, genetics and evolutionary biology. Many of our research projects integrate over the levels of biological organization and involve multi-disciplinary collaborations.
Studying biology at our department consists of an essential combination of theory and practice from the first year on.
We explore life and biological evolution in a range of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. The Department of Biology is one of the scientifically most productive units of the University and successfully educates experts at all degree levels.
The importance of grandmothers in the lives of their grandchildren has changed. The shared lifetime between grandmothers and their grandchildren has a fundamental effect on how grandparents and grandchildren influence each other. A study conducted by biologists at the University of Turku, based on Finnish parish registers, indicates that, in this agrarian society, the shared lifetime of grandchildren and their grandmothers was short.
Humans have been capturing wild Asian elephants for more than 3,000 years for different purposes, and this still continues today despite the fact that the populations are declining. An international team of researchers has now analysed records of timber elephants in Myanmar to understand the effects of capture on the animals and their survival. The study shows that even years after their capture, wild-caught elephants’ mortality rate remains increased, and their average life expectancy is several years shorter compared to captive-born animals.
Researchers from the University of Turku, Finland have discovered a new wasp species in the Amazon which has an exceptionally large stinger that surprised even the scientists. The new insect, which is found in the extremely diverse transitional zone between the Andes and the Amazonian lowland rainforest, uses its stinger both for laying eggs and injecting venom.
Researchers of the University of Turku, Finland, have studied a timber elephant population in Myanmar and discovered that Asian elephant personality manifests through three different factors. The personality factors identified by the researchers are Attentiveness, Sociability and Aggressiveness.
The University of Turku has long traditions in multidisciplinary sea and maritime research. At the moment, the University is recruiting two assistant or associate professors (tenure track) and a research director.
Throughout the history of life, new groups of species have flourished at the expense of earlier ones and global biodiversity has varied dramatically over geologic time. A new study led by the University of Turku shows that completely different factors regulate the rise and fall of species.
Tree ferns still occupy the tropical moist forests in Australia, even though they shared their “golden age” with dinosaurs.
A Finnish-Norwegian-Scottish research group has discovered a gene that is important in determining the size a salmon is when it returns from the sea to reproduce in its home river. Surprisingly, the same gene is also involved in regulating the timing of puberty in humans. The results have profound implications for the management and protection of wild salmon populations, and may also help study health issues related to puberty in humans.
