Our research and teaching are deeply rooted in organismal biology, i.e. the study of structure, function, and evolution at the level of the organism. We focus on questions of plant diversity – How have key structural features such as the angiosperm flower evolved? How is morphological diversity distributed among taxa? How are different structural features correlated with one another? Why are certain morphologies common and have evolved repeatedly while others are rare? We address these and related questions across a broad range of taxa and apply state-of-the art techniques as well as novel theoretical approaches to answer them.
News
- scilog-Article Austrian Science Fund (FWF) (german):
Wie Tropenpflanzen zu ihren Bestäubern finden – 18. October 2023 - Online-Article mediaportal University of Vienna (german):
ERC Starting Grant für Agnes Dellinger – 5. September 2023 - Science-News-Article:
"Plant turns suspected crop pest into pollinator" – 13. October 2022 - Science ORF.at (german):
"Blüten nutzen Parasiten als Bestäuber" – 6. October 2022 - Online-Article mediaportal University of Vienna (german):
"Aus Feind wird Freund: Schädlinge werden zu Pflanzenbestäubern" – 6. October 2022 - Publication in Current Biology:
"Evidence for the recruitment of florivorous plant bugs as pollinators" – 4. October 2022 - Young Researchers in Archaeometry 5 (Online Workshop):
Tutorial: Is pollen useful for achaeological research? The what, why, and how! - The Museumspodcast »Das Grüne Sofa« (german):
"Flower-Power: Vergangenen Ökosystemen auf der Spur – Die Erforschung von Pollen fossiler Blüten und Insekten" (Podcast mit Friðgeir Grímsson) - Online-Article mediaportal University of Vienna (german):
"Fossiler Fressrausch: 47 Millionen Jahre alte Fliege mit vollem Bauch gefunden" – 11. März 2021
Recent Publications 2021-2023
2025
Emelianova, K., Hawranek, A.-S., Eriksson, M. C., Wolfe, T. M., & Paun, O. (2025). Ecological divergence of sibling allopolyploid marsh orchids is associated with species specific plasticity and distinct fungal communities. The Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology, 121(4), Article e70001. https://doi.org/10.1111/tpj.70001
Vieira, M., Jolley, D., Zetter, R., Mahdi, S., & Grimsson, F. (2025). Enhancing dinoflagellate cyst classification through combined LM and SEM analysis: A reassessment of Spiniferites magnificus and Fibradinium annetorpense. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 336. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.revpalbo.2025.105300
Heřmanová, Z., von Balthazar, M., Kvaček, J., & Schönenberger, J. (2025). Felinanthus: A New Normapolles Genus from the Late Cretaceous of Central Europe. International Journal of Plant Sciences, 186(1), 53-67. https://doi.org/10.1086/732627
Pan, A. D., Jacobs, B. F., Currano, E. D., Gostel, M. R., Lowry, II, P. P., Plunkett, G. M., Hoffmann, J., Geier, C., & Grimsson, F. (2025). Fossil Astropanax Seem. (Araliaceae) from the early Miocene (21.73 Mya) Mush Valley plant assemblages of Ethiopia. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, XX, Article boaf011. https://doi.org/10.1093/botlinnean/boaf011
von Balthazar, M., Lachmayer, M., Hawranek, A.-S., Kopper, C., Schönenberger, J., & Chartier, M. (2025). Pollination and reproductive systems in columbines (Aquilegia, Ranunculaceae) - Review and insights. International Journal of Plant Sciences, 186(1), 38-52. https://doi.org/10.1086/733070
Chartier, M., Kopper, C., Münch, M., Messinger Carril, O., Díaz-Infante, S., Lachmayer, M., Ulrich, S., Wilson, J. S., Schönenberger, J., & von Balthazar, M. (2025). Pollination biology and secondary pollinators in seven North American Aquilegia species. International Journal of Plant Sciences, 186(1), 20-37. https://doi.org/10.1086/733068
2024
Grimsson, F., Geier, C., Bouchal, J. M., Ulrich, S., Zetter, R., & Vieira, M. (2024). Fossil Hyaenanche Pollen from the Eocene of Kenya: The Paleophytogeograpy and Paleoclimate of a Relict Plant Genus Endemic to the Cape Province, South Africa. Biology, 13(12), Article 1079. https://doi.org/10.3390/biology13121079
Purgina, C., Grimsson, F., Weber, M., & Ulrich, S. (2024). Pollen dispersal units of selected Orchidoideae and their morphological, ultrastructural, and chemical features. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 331, Article 105211. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.revpalbo.2024.105211
Wuttke, M., Poschmann, M. J., Wappler, T., Bouchal, J. M., Geier, C., Ulrich, S., & Grimsson, F. (2024). Pollen-feeding in a giant pelobatid tadpole from the late Oligocene of Enspel, Germany. Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments, 104(4), 999-1026. Article 104831. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12549-024-00603-8
Purgina, C., Grimsson, F., & Ulrich, S. (2024). Proximal aperture in Cephalanthera longifolia (L.) Fritsch (Orchidaceae) pollen: a rare germination site for angiosperms. Botanical studies, 65(1), Article 33. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40529-024-00439-7
Geier, C., Engel, M. S., Bouchal, J. M., Ulrich, S., Grimsson, F., Wedmann, S., & Wappler, T. (2024). The earliest large carpenter bee (Xylocopa) and its adhering pollen (Araliaceae, Theaceae). Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments, 104(4), 949-962. Article s12549-024-00604-7. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12549-024-00604-7
Sutthinon, P., Meesawat, U., Ulrich, S., & Schönenberger, J. (2024). Histochemical and ultrastructural analysis of tapetum and sporoderm development in relation to precocious pollenkitt production of Garcinia dulcis (Roxb.) Kurz. Protoplasma, 261(6), 1281-1295. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00709-024-01969-4
Koelzer, K., Ribarits, A., Weyermair, K., Bouchal, J. M., Mayr, J., & Weber, M. (2024). Trees Are a Major Foraging Resource for Honeybees in the City. Plants, 13(21), Article 3094. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13213094
Barreto, E., Boehm, M. M. A., Ogutcen, E., Abrahamczyk, S., Kessler, M., Bascompte, J., Dellinger, A. S., Bello, C., Dehling, D. M., Duchenne, F., Kaehler, M., Lagomarsino, L. P., Lohmann, L. G., Maglianesi, M. A., Morlon, H., Muchhala, N., Ornelas, J. F., Perret, M., Salinas, N. R., ... Graham, C. H. (2024). Macroevolution of the plant–hummingbird pollination system. Biological Reviews, 99(5), 1831-1847. https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.13094
Dirr, L., Bastl, K., Bastl, M., Bouchal, J. M., Berger, U. E., & Grimsson, F. (2024). Crowd-sourced-Symptomdaten bei Pollenallergie: Erprobung eines neuen Studiendesigns zur Bewertung der Wirksamkeit von Nahrungsergänzungsmitteln. Allergo Journal, 33(6), 39-49. https://doi.org/10.1007/s15007-024-6340-z
Dirr, L., Bastl, K., Bastl, M., Bouchal, J. M., Berger, U. E., & Grimsson, F. (2024). Crowd-sourced symptom data in pollen allergy: testing a novel study approach for assessing the efficacy of food supplements. Allergo Journal International, 33, 180-189. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40629-024-00283-y
Geier, C., Bouchal, J. M., Ulrich, S., Uhl, D., Wappler, T., Wedmann, S., Zetter, R., Schönenberger, J., & Grimsson, F. (2024). Potential pollinators and paleoecological aspects of Eocene Ludwigia (Onagraceae) from Eckfeld, Germany. Palaeoworld, 33(4), 1079-1104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palwor.2023.07.003
Kopper, C., Schönenberger, J., & Dellinger, A. S. (2024). High floral disparity without pollinator shifts in buzz-bee-pollinated Melastomataceae. New Phytologist, 242(5), 2322-2337. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.19735
Reginato, M., Ordónez-Parra, C. A., Messeder, J. V. S., Brito, V. L. G., Dellinger, A., Kriebel, R., Marra, C., Melo, L., Cornelissen, T., Fuzessy, L., Sperotto, P., Calderón-Hernández, M., Guerra, T. J., Kopper, C., Mancipe-Murillo, C., Pizo, M. A., Posada-Herrera, J. M., Hasui, É., Silva, W. R., & Silveira, F. A. O. (2024). MelastomaTRAITs 1.0: A database of functional traits in Melastomataceae, a large pantropical angiosperm family. Ecology, 105(6), Article e4308. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.4308
Helmstetter, A. J., Méndez, M., Schönenberger, J., Burgarella, C., Anderson, B., von Balthazar, M., Billiard, S., de Boer, H., Cros, J., Delecroix, P.-A., Dufay, M., Pannell, J. R., Bianchi, D. S., Schoen, D. J., Vallejo-Marin, M., Zenil-Ferguson, R., Sauquet, H., Glémin, S., & Käfer, J. (2024). Pollination and mating traits underlie diverse reproductive strategies in flowering plants. bioRxiv. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.02.26.582019
Dellinger, A. S., Lagomarsino, L., Michelangeli, F., Dullinger, S., & Smith, S. D. (2024). The Sequential Direct and Indirect Effects of Mountain Uplift, Climatic Niche, and Floral Trait Evolution on Diversification Dynamics in an Andean Plant Clade. Systematic Biology, 73(3), 594-612. Article syae011. https://doi.org/10.1093/sysbio/syae011
Gutermann, W., Jang, T. S., Kästner, A., Prehsler, D., Reich, D., Berger, A., Flatscher, R., Gilli, C., Hofbauer, M., Lachmayer, M., Sander, R., Sonnleitner, M., & Mucina, L. (2024). Thliphthisa sapphus (Rubiaceae, Rubieae), a new species from Lefkada (Ionian Islands, Greece) and its ecological position. PhytoKeys, 241, 65-79. Article 119144. https://doi.org/10.3897/phytokeys.241.119144
Purgina, C., Ulrich, S., Weber, M., & Grimsson, F. (2024). Morphological and Ultrastructural Features of Selected Epidendroideae Pollen Dispersal Units and New Insights into Their Chemical Nature. Plants, 13(8), Article 1114. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13081114
Ulrich, S., Vieira, M., Coiro, M., Bouchal, J. M., Geier, C., Jacobs, B. F., Currano, E. D., Lenz, O. K., Wilde, V., Zetter, R., & Grimsson, F. (2024). Origin and Early Evolution of Hydrocharitaceae and the Ancestral Role of Stratiotes. Plants, 13(7), Article 1008. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13071008
Quan, Y., Deng, S., Prenafeta-Boldủ, F. X., Mayer, V. E., Muggia, L., Cometto, A., Vicente, V. A., da Silva, N. M., Grisolia, M. E., Song, Y., Ahmed, S. A., Niu, X., de Souza Lima, B. J. F., Feng, P., Vitale, R. G., Teixeira, M., Sudhadham, M., de Azevedo, C. P. E. S., Bocca, A., ... de Hoog, S. (2024). The origin of human pathogenicity and biological interactions in Chaetothyriales. Fungal Diversity, 125(1), 99-120. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13225-023-00518-3
Simón-Porcar, V., Escudero, M., Santos-Gally, R., Sauquet, H., Schönenberger, J., Johnson, S. D., & Arroyo, J. (2024). Convergent evolutionary patterns of heterostyly across angiosperms support the pollination-precision hypothesis. Nature Communications, 15(1), Article 1237. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-45118-0
López-Martínez, A. M., Magallón, S., von Balthazar, M., Schönenberger, J., Sauquet, H., & Chartier, M. (2024). Angiosperm flowers reached their highest morphological diversity early in their evolutionary history. New Phytologist, 241(3), 1348-1360. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.19389
Silva, S. J. B. D., Leme, F. M., Franco, A. P. S. D. A., Arruda, R. D. C. D. O., Schönenberger, J., & Alves, F. M. (2024). Comparative floral anatomy and evolutionary interpretations of cryptic dioecy in Ocotea velloziana (Lauraceae). Rodriguésia, 75, Article e01522023.2024.
Barrajon-Santos, V., Nepel, M., Hausmann, B., Voglmayr, H., Woebken, D., & Mayer, V. E. (2024). Dynamics and drivers of fungal communities in a multipartite ant-plant association. BMC Biology, 22(1), Article 112. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-024-01897-y
Gross, M., Prieto, J., Grimsson, F., & Bojar, H.-P. (2024). Hyena and ‘false’ sabre-toothed cat coprolites from the late Middle Miocene of south-eastern Austria. Historical Biology, 36(9), 1903-1922. https://doi.org/10.1080/08912963.2023.2237979