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Øystein Varpe - Professor
I am an evolutionary ecologist with a broad range of interests, including behavioural ecology, life history theory, population biology, and trophic interactions. Much of my research is on why we observe variation in life histories and behaviour, both within and between species, and how this variation influences population dynamics, interactions and ecosystems. I am also deeply fascinated by seasonality and aim to understand how seasonality shapes ecological processes and evolutionary adaptations. Traits such as energy storage, reproduction and migrations are central in my work. Most of my work is in marine ecosystems and typically on birds, fish or zooplankton, but other groups and systems also inspire my work. I do much work in polar and high-latitude areas and am also increasingly working in coastal systems in and near Bergen. I combine investigations in the field (including experiments) with mathematical models and statistical analyses of data. My main position is with Department of Biological Sciences (BIO) where I am part of the Theoretical Ecology Group, a unit of several professors and researchers. Additionally, I work for the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA) in an adjunct position and I am a member of the Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research.
Bluesky profile: @oysteinvarpe.bsky.social
Iliana-Vasiliki Ntinou - PhD candidate
I am a marine biologist with a keen interest in plankton ecology of polar ecosystems. I studied biology at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, and I focused on the biodiversity and abundance of the phytoplankton and zooplankton community at a coastal site of Thermaikos Gulf, Greece. Later, I completed an internship at the Fisheries Research Institute in Greece and took part in monitoring of water quality in Kavala Gulf and Nestos Lagoons. During my MSc in marine biology at the University of Bergen, Norway, I did my thesis work as part of the Nansen Legacy Project. I studied elemental composition of particulate matter in the Barents Sea and investigated dominant microalgal groups and the physical processes that explain their distribution patterns and origins. I am currently a PhD candidate at the University of Bergen and part of the interdisciplinary research project Climate Narratives, where I focus on the impact of oceanographic conditions on the seasonal and longer term dynamics of the plankton community in Disko Bay, Greenland. My advisers are Øystein Varpe, Lars Henrik Smedsrud (GFI, UiB) and Torkel Gissel Nielsen (DTU).
Steven Guidos - PhD candidate
I am a coastal ecologist who studies trophic connectivity between marine and terrestrial environments. My current work focuses much on the impacts of fisheries activity outside of marine ecosystems, via connections through semi-aquatic mustelids in Norway. As a Masters student at UiB I studied competition between coastal living otter (Lutra lutra) and invasive mink (Neovison vison) populations. I have continued to study both species post-graduation and developed an interest in their relationships and potential impacts on vulnerable seabird species. My undergraduate degree in marine biology is from the University of North Carolina, Wilmington, and I studied abroad at James Cook University, Australia in 2015. My PhD is a part of the CASCADES project (“Understanding human-induced trophic cascades in coastal ecosystems”), financed by the Norwegian Research Council. My advisors are Øystein Varpe and Arild Landa (NINA).
Nadja Meister - PhD candidate
I am a marine ecologist with a passion for intertidal rocky shores. My PhD project builds on my MSc research on blue mussels and their crawling predators, especially dogwhelks, and asks how environmental conditions and phenotypic variation shape their interactions. I am fascinated by how the morphology, physiology, and behaviour of one species can affect another, and how these relationships vary across space and time. My research combines field observations and experiments with mesocosm and laboratory studies to investigate predator behaviour and performance, as well as physiological and morphological variation. Some experiments are conducted over extended periods, while others are repeated across seasons and years to explore temporal variation. Much of my research takes place at the Marine Biological Station Espegrend, where I also enjoy involving and supervising BSc and MSc students in projects related to my research. I am part of the Theoretical Ecology Group at the University of Bergen, where I am advised by Øystein Varpe, Christian Jørgensen, and Tom J. Langbehn
Juan Manuel Valero Rodríguez - affiliated researcher
I am a marine ecologist whose career has been extensively linked to environmental impacts in coastal ecosystems. My Melbourne University PhD was focused on the properties of macroalgae for bioremediation. Overall, my academic life has offered me many interesting topics to study, namely: impacts of fish farm escapees; effects of aquaculture nutrients on pelagic processes, taxonomy, abundance and composition of pelagic species; effects of aquaculture on benthic organisms and the use of macroalgae bioremediation of anthropic-derived nutrients and other human-induced effects on the environment. Here in bergen I am invested in the study of seasonality-induced changes in fucoids and their distribution under a climate-change context, previously part of the SEAS program.
Martyna Syposz - affiliated researcher
I am a researcher exploring various threats posed on seabirds, including light pollution, plastic pollution and climate change. I did my PhD at Oxford University, where I studied the effects of light pollution on behaviour of Procellariiform seabirds. Currently, I am a postdoc at University of Gdansk (UG) and I investigate the little auks` breeding phenology, behaviour and nest microclimate in the warming Arctic. The project is called Responses of breeding seabirds to the warming Arctic and is funded by the National Science Centre Poland. Through our combination of fieldwork in Svalbard, data analyses, and modelling I hope to deepen our understanding of how the changing Arctic environment impacts seabirds. In the project I work together with Øystein Varpe (UiB) and Katarzyna Wojczulanis-Jakubas (UG)
Jonah Laan - MSc student
I am a marine biology master’s student at the University of Bergen, Norway, interested mainly in marine mammals and behavioural ecology. I did my BSc at Wageningen University and Research in the Netherlands, where my BSc thesis focussed on courtship behaviour in Neotropical birds. Currently, my MSc thesis focusses on krill consumption by fin whales and humpback whales around the South Orkney Islands in Antarctica. To study this, I am using aerial photogrammetry and bioenergetics modelling to calculate annual consumption of Antarctic krill. My supervisors are Øystein Varpe, Bjørn Krafft (IMR), Martin Biuw (IMR) & Ulf Lindstrøm (IMR/UiT).
Maria Eleni Vogiatzi - MSc student
I completed my BSc in oceanography and marine biosciences at the University of the Aegean, Greece, where I developed a strong interest in cetacean ecology and behaviour. During my internship at MARE-Madeira, Portugal, I was introduced to cetacean bioacoustics. I am currently pursuing a MSc in marine biology, at the University of Bergen. My thesis investigates the seasonal occurrence and vocal behaviour of harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) in Hardangerfjord, Norway, using long-term F-POD data. My supervisors are Øystein Varpe (UiB) and Carla Freitas (IMR/MARE-Madeira).
Stine - MSc student
I am a Master's student in biology at the University of Bergen, where I also completed my Bachelor's degree. During my undergraduate studies, I spent an exchange period at the University Centre in Svalbard. I have a strong interest in ornithology, animal behaviour, and Arctic wildlife. My Master's project investigates how latitudinal variations in light regimes shape the diving and foraging ecology of common guillemots (Uria aalge) across two distinct Norwegian colonies. Using multi-season GPS and depth-recording data, I am examining how conditions like the midnight sun influence spatial habitat use, visual foraging opportunities, and diving activity. My advisers are Øystein Varpe and from NINA Katherine Snell and Geir Helge Systad.
Past PhD students
Past PhD students
Robynne Calypso Nowicki
PhD 2026. Seasonal energetics in Barents Sea macrozooplankton and fish. University Centre in Svalbard (UNIS) and University of Oslo.
Rebecca Duncan
PhD 2024. Climate change induced shifts in polar microalgae nutritional content: species, community and trophic implications. University of Technology Sidney
Erin Kunisch
PhD 2022. Sea ice dependence in Arctic marine organisms: life cycles, resource use, and trophic linkages. UiT The Arctic University of Norway.
Tom Langbehn
PhD 2019 - Light and visual foraging in the pelagic: opportunities and constraints along gradients of seasonality. University of Bergen
Daniel Hitchcock
PhD 2018 - Life history and pollutant accumulation in wildlife. University of Oslo
Kanchana Bandara
PhD 2018 - Diel and seasonal vertical migrations of high-latitude zooplankton: knowledge gaps and a high-resolution bridge. Nord University & UNIS
Marina Espinasse
PhD 2017 - Interannual variability in key zooplankton species in the North-East Atlantic: an analysis based on abundance and phenology. Nord University
Past MSc students
Past MSc students
Emma Polard. MSc 2026. Eurasian otters in Atlantic puffin colonies: temporal and spatial patterns of activity and predation on three Norwegian islands pdf on ResearchGate
Isak Wulff Gaasland MSc 2026. Norwegian fisheries waste discard dynamics and spatial overlap with northern fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis)
Marius Emil Lid MSc 2026. Spawning time dynamics of the Norwegian spring-spawning herring in the 20th century
Karoline Elise Haugehåtveit MSc 2026. Heatwave and eutrophication impacts on eelgrass-associated invertebrate and epiphyte communities: a mesocosm approach
Julie Charlotte Swensen MSc 2026. Assessing Ecosystem Services of Ruppia in the Norwegian Skagerrak
Sina Marie Torgrimsen MSc 2026. Thermal windows of kelp-urchin interactions: how temperature influences grazing pressure and kelp vulnerability across early life stages
Marie Runhovde MSc 2026. Soft bottom community structure in inner Porsangerfjord before and after the invasion of the red king crab
Linnea Thomassen MSc 2026. Shell strength of Mytilus spp. in relation to a salinity gradient, predator presence, and habitat type in a western Norwegian fjord
Thomas A. Bondevik MSc 2026. Phenology of wintering eiders, blue mussel predation and kleptoparasitism in an urban environment
Ole Kollstrøm Heilevang MSc 2026. A comparison of FlowCAM automated imaging and manual microscopy for mesozooplankton enumeration and classification
Mathea Oceana Sylte Brunvoll MSc 2025. Acoustic investigations of pelagic biomass distribution around a floating offshore windfarm
Ann Yuki Irgens Banshoya MSc 2025. Impacts of the invasive colonial tunicate Didemnum vexillum Kott, 2002 on kelp Laminaria hyperborea (Gunnerus) Foslie 1884: photosynthesis and epiphyte diversity
Ronja Kaplin MSc 2025. Effects of grazing pressure on the growth rate of the brown alga Ascophyllum nodosum along a vertical gradient on intertidal rocky shores
Frida Thorbjørnsen Hinna MSc 2025. Breeding phenology across the urban-rural interface in the lesser black-backed gull (Larus fuscus)
Bergfrid Høgås Skjæveland MSc 2025. A shift in species composition, life cycle length and body size of Calanus in Svalbard waters pdf
Alva Sofie Knutsen Ims MSc 2025. Response of Zostera marina and associated fauna to simulated heatwaves: insights from a mesocosm study
Estela Marques MSc 2025. Niche partitioning in two sympatric alcids: spatial foraging distributions and diving behaviour in a Northern Norway colony pdf
Bergfrid Høgås Skjæveland MSc 2025. A shift in species composition, life cycle length and body size of Calanus in Svalbard waters
Tom-Anders Smørås Brakstad MSc 2025. Breeding ecology of Atlantic puffins (Fratercula arctica) in Finnmark: Using camera traps to determine nest attendance
Laís Borgo Perini MSc 2024 (IMBRSea). Seabirds as ecological bridges: flux of nutrients from sea to land by Atlantic puffins (Fratercula arctica) along the Norwegian coast
Gabriele Tosetti MSc 2024 (IMBRSea). Foraging behavior and area use of Atlantic puffins breeding in the Hjelmsøya colony, northern Norway
Marte Åsmul MSc 2024. Investigating shifts in epifaunal communities in Zostera marina meadows and Fucus serratus beds in the Norwegian Skagerrak
Vetle Fredheim MSc 2023. Composition of Gelatinous Zooplankton Communities in Korsfjord and Fanafjord; seasonal dynamics and change over 20 years
Idun Kjoberg MSc 2023. The influence of re-establishing Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra) on the activity of invasive American mink (Neovison vison) on the southwest coast of Norway pdf
Marina Metic MSc 2023. Spatial and temporal trends in the body condition of the harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) in Norwegian coastal waters
Catharina Olsen MSc 2023. Habitat niche differentiation of Ballan wrasse (Labrus bergylta) and Corkwing wrasse (Symphodus melops) revealed by acoustic telemetry: Implication for an urban restoration project abstract
Ingvild Marie Krohn Riska MSc 2023. A modeling study of behavior and sampling bias introduced by artificial light on marine organisms during the polar night pdf
Nora Stampe MSc 2022. Diet variability in black-legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) in Kongsfjorden in relation to ongoing environmental changes
Nadja Meister MSc 2022. The role of crawling predators in the decline and distribution of blue mussels in Norwegian coastal waters pdf
Joseph Lawrence MSc 2022. A new method in population studies of Halichondria panicea: comparing suitability of mtDNA and rRNA as genetic markers. University of Oulu
Torunn Stople Kallelid MSc 2022. Is a warmer Arctic a more contaminated Arctic? Atlantification of Kongsfjorden in relation to contaminant levels in seabirds. University of Bergen pdf
Stian Dreyer Thorsen MSc 2021. Kleptoparasitic relationships between common eiders (Somateria mollissima) and large gulls in Solheimsviken, Bergen. University of Bergen pdf
Marthe Olsen MSc 2021. The effect of climate variability and prey abundance on chick growth in a subarctic Atlantic puffin (Fratercula arctica) colony. University of Bergen
Vanja Sand Syvertsen MSc 2021. A comparison of egg investment in lesser black-backed gulls (Larus fuscus) from urban and non-urban colonies. University of Bergen.
Robin B. Zweigel MSc 2020. A physically based approach to simulate sub-grid snow depth and ground surface temperature distribution. University of Oslo & UNIS abstract
Christian Stolz MSc 2019. The nestling diet of Svalbard snow buntings identified by DNA. UiT - The Arctic University of Norway & UNIS pdf
Emelie Skogsberg MSc 2019. Effects of seasonal riverine run-off on contaminant accumulation in Arctic littoral amphipods. University of Oslo & UNIS abstract
Eirik Aasmo Finne MSc 2019. Flux of nutrients and mercury from an Arctic seabird colony to the coastal food web. University of Oslo & UNIS abstract
Ella Weissenberg MSc 2018. Spatial structures of a high-Arctic macrozooplankton community. University of Helsinki & UNIS
Amalia Keck MSc 2018. Recolonization and succession of a subtidal hard-bottom epibenthic community in Smeerenburgfjorden, NW Svalbard. UiT - The Arctic University of Norway & UNIS pdf
Elinor Tessin MSc 2018. Drivers of spatial variability in spring bloom onset and magnitude along a latitudinal gradient in the Nordic Seas. University of Bergen & UNIS pdf
Calum Bachell MSc 2017. The role of the male Common Eider Somateria mollissima as a protector against nest-predation. UiT - The Arctic University of Norway & UNIS pdf
Svenja Halfter MSc 2017. Large-scale phenology of marine plankton in the North Atlantic and Arctic ocean. University of Kiel & UNIS.
Marine Cusa MSc 2016. The effect of seasonality on polar cod (Boreogadus saida) dietary habits and temporal feeding strategies in Svalbard waters. UiT - The Arctic University of Norway & UNIS pdf
Preben Danielsen MSc 2016. Climate trends, weather fluctuations and calving phenology in Svalbard reindeer (Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus). NTNU & UNIS. pdf
Jon Runar Lorentzen MSc 2015. Marine biomass consumption by wild Svalbard reindeer: fecal stable isotope analysis as a tool to detect climate change effects. NTNU & UNIS. pdf
Tom Langbehn MSc 2015. Feeding success in an extreme-light environment: modelling seasonal prey encounter of Arctic fish. University of Bremen & UNIS.
Kim Scherrer MSc 2015. Light, temperature and competition: understanding the causes for climate-driven regime shifts in arctic marine benthos. Uppsala University & UNIS. pdf
Caitlin Frankish MSc 2015. A meta-ecosystem model: seabirds as vectors. University of Southampton & UNIS.
Sam Eglund Newby MSc 2015. Feeding activity and diet of Arctic and boreal fish species during the Polar night. University of Southampton & UNIS.
Elida Skøien MSc 2015. Causes and consequences of breeding synchrony in the snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis). NTNU & UNIS. pdf
Charlotte de Vries MSc 2015. Disentangling mortality and development rates in an arctic copepod population. University of Amsterdam & UNIS.
Hannah Wauchope MSc 2014. Climate change could truncate the world's major migration flyways for Arctic breeding species. University of Queensland.
Zofia Burr MSc 2014. Breeding later at higher latitudes: explaining seabird reproductive timing in the northeastern Atlantic. University of Bergen & UNIS.
Kanchana Bandara MSc 2014. Mesozooplankton community dynamics in a high Arctic fjord. Nord University and UNIS. pdf
Larissa Beumer MSc 2014. Feeding behaviour and diet quality of high-Arctic wild reindeer in response to changes in snow-ice conditions during winter. Eberswalde University and UNIS.
Jordan Grigor MSc 2011. An investigation into strategies of protandrous emergence and arrival in Calanus spp.
Beke Regelin MSc 2011. Purple sandpipers (Calidris maritima) feeding in an Arctic estuary: tidal cycle and seasonal dynamics in abundance. Uppsala University and UNIS. pdf
Allison Bailey MSc 2010. Lipids and diapause in Calanus spp. in a high-Arctic fjord: state-dependent strategies? University of Tromsø and UNIS.
Anika Beiersdorf MSc 2009. Foraging trip duration in relation to body mass: are little auks heavier following longer or shorter trips?
Aino Luukkonen MSc 2009. The use of space and food resources by purple sandpipers (Calidris maritima) in a high Arctic estuary in relation to tidal dynamics.
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