Mitarbeiter:innen

Basic Information

Address        Department of Biology

                       University of Graz

                       Holteigasse 6

                       8010 Graz, Austria

E-mail           Bettina.weber(at)uni-graz.at

Website        diversitaet-oekologie.uni-graz.at/en/diversity-and-ecology/

Education

2013    (re-)Habilitation, University of Mainz, Germany

2011    Habilitation in Plant Ecology, University of Kaiserslautern, Germany

2004    MAS (Master of Advanced Studies) Geographical Information Science & Systems, University of Salzburg, Austria

2000    PhD in Biology, University of Kaiserslautern, Germany

1994    Diploma (equivalent to MSc) in Biology, University of Würzburg, Germany, and University of Albany, NY, USA

Academic Positions

Since 2024      Deputy Head of Institute of Biology, University of Graz, Austria

Since 2019      Full professor for Botany, University of Graz, Austria

2015-2019      Research Group Leader, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Mainz, Germany

2013-2019      Faculty Member, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany

2013-2015      Research Team Leader, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Mainz, Germany

2012-2013      Staff Scientist, University of Kaiserslautern, Germany

2008-2012      Research Group Leader, University of Kaiserslautern, Germany

2000-2008       Postdoc Researcher (part-time due to childcare responsibilities), University of Kaiserslautern, Germany

Contributions to research community

• Speaker of the field of excellence Climate Change (https://climate-change.uni-graz.at/en/) of the University of Graz (since 2023; 2021-2023: co-speaker)

• Member of Scientific Steering Committee of Amazon Tall Tower Observatory project (www.attoproject.org) since 2017

• Initiation and leading role in converting the Masters of Biology into an innovative modular structure (2020-2023) and member of the curricular commission since 2023

• Initiation of International BIOCRUST Workshop Series, with the first one organized by her together with her supervisor Burkhard Büdel in 2011 and the 6^th one being planned for 2026

Most Important Publications (full publication list given here)

Weber, B., Belnap, J., Büdel, B., Antoninka, A.J., Barger, N.N., Chaudhary, V.B., Darrouzet-Nardi, A., Eldridge, D.J., Faist, A.M., Ferrenberg, S., Havrilla, C.A., Huber-Sannwald, E., Malam Issa, O., Maestre, F.T., Reed, S.C., Rodriguez-Caballero, E., Tucker, C., Young, K.E., Zhang, Y., Zhao, Y., Zhou, X., Bowker, M.A. (2022) What is a biocrust? A refined, contemporary definition for a broadening research community. Biological Reviews. doi: 10.1111/brv.12862

Development of a refined, detailed biocrust definition, delimited to other types of microbial communities and widely supported by the scientific community (22 coauthors).

Rodriguez-Caballero, E., Stanelle, T., Egerer, S., Cheng, Y., Su, H., Canton, Y., Belnap, J., Andreae, M.O., Tegen, I., Reick, C., Pöschl, U., Weber, B. (2022) Global cycling and climate effects of aeolian dust controlled by biological soil crusts. Nature Geoscience. doi.org/10.1038/s41561-022-00942-1

First global modelling approach assessing the relevance of biological soil crusts in global dust cycling und current and future conditions.

Edtbauer, A., Pfannerstill, E.Y., Pires Florentino, A.P., Barbosa, C.G.G., Rodriguez-Caballero, E., Zannoni, N., Alves, R.P., Wolff, S., Tsokankunku, A., Aptroot, A., Sá, M.O., Araújo, A.C., Sörgel, M., Oliveira, S.M., Weber, B., Williams, J. (2021) Cryptogamic organisms are a substantial source and sink for volatile organic compounds in the Amazon region. Commun Earth Environ 2, 258. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-021-00328-y

First study assessing and quantifying VOC emission of tropical cryptogamic communities.

Maier, S., Kratz, A. M., Weber, J., Prass, M., Liu, F., Clark, A. T., Abed, R. M. M., Su, H., Cheng, Y., Eickhorst, T., Fiedler, S., Pöschl, U., Weber, B. (2021) Water-driven microbial nitrogen transformations in biological soil crusts causing atmospheric nitrous acid and nitric oxide emissions. ISME. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41396-021-01127-1

Detailled study investigating the microbial cycling processes driving nitrogen cycling and emission of reactive N compounds.

Löbs, N., Barbosa, C.G.C., Brill, S., Walter, D., Ditas, F., de Oliveira Sá, M., de Araújo, A.C., de Oliveira, L.R., Godoi, R.H.M., Wolff, S., Piepenbring, M., Kesselmeier, J., Artaxo, P., Andreae, M.O., Pöschl, U., Pöhlker, C., Weber, B. (2020) Aerosol measurement methods to quantify spore emissions from fungi and cryptogamic covers in the Amazon. Atmospheric Measurement Techniques 13: 153-164. https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-153-2020

Description of a novel method to investigate aerosol emission patterns of cryptogams under field and controlled lab conditions.

Rodriguez-Caballero, E., Belnap, J., Büdel, B., Crutzen, P. J., Andreae, M. O., Pöschl, U., & Weber, B. (2018). Dryland photoautotrophic soil surface communities endangered by global change. Nature Geoscience, 11(3), 185-189. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0072-1

First map of current global biological soil crust distribution and first modelling approach on future biological soil crust distribution as a consequence of climate and land use change.

Maier, S., Tamm, A., Wu, D., Caesar, J., Grube, M., & Weber, B. (2018). Photoautotrophic organisms control microbial abundance, diversity, and physiology in different types of biological soil crusts. The ISME journal, 12(4), 1032-1046. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41396-018-0062-8

First study showing the characteristic composition of microbial communities in biological soil crusts as related to the different succession stages.

Weber, B., Belnap, J., & Büdel, B. (2016). Biological soil crusts: an organizing principle in drylands (pp. 3-13). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-30214-0

Encyclopaedia on the current status of biological soil crust research (946 citations; 88 000 chapters sold; as on March 11, 2025).

Weber, B., Berkemeier, T., Ruckteschler, N., Caesar, J., Heintz, H., Ritter, H., & Braß, H. (2016). Development and calibration of a novel sensor to quantify the water content of surface soils and biological soil crusts. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 7(1), 14-22. https://doi.org/10.1111/2041-210X.12459

Development of instrument to measure and monitor the water content and activity patterns of biological soil crusts. The instrument is protected by a utility patent and build and traded by a company.

Weber, B., Wu, D., Tamm, A., …, Pöschl, U. (2015) Biological soil crusts accelerate the nitrogen cycle through large NO and HONO emissions in drylands. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 112(50): 15384-15389. doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1515818112

Detection of the release patterns and mechanisms of reactive nitrogen compounds (HONO and NO) by biological soil crusts and characterization of their role in nitrogen cycling in drylands.

Elbert, W., Weber, B., Burrows, S., Steinkamp, J., Büdel, B., Andreae, M. O., & Pöschl, U. (2012). Contribution of cryptogamic covers to the global cycles of carbon and nitrogen. Nature Geoscience, 5(7), 459-462. https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1486

First study assessing the relevance of cryptogamic covers (biological soil crusts form one key community) in current and future global carbon and nitrogen fixation.