Spaethe, Johannes
PD Dr. Johannes Spaethe
Research group leader
Zoology II / Spaethe lab
Universität Würzburg
Biozentrum
Am Hubland
Biozentrum
Am Hubland
97074
Würzburg
Building:
B1 (Biozentrum)
Room:
D111
Phone:
+49 931 31-83408
Link:
Spaethe lab

My research centers on the function, ecology and evolution of sensory and neuronal systems in insects. In particular, I focus on the visual system in bees. My approach combines the methods of molecular genetics, neurobiology and behavioural science.
Current research projects are:
- Psychophysics of color vision in insects
- Eye development & Molecular evolution of opsins in insects
- Visual learning and memory formation
- Sensory perception of taste in bees
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Bumblebees are able to perceive amino acids via chemotactile antennal stimulation in Journal of Comparative Physiology A (2019). 205(3) 321–331.
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Immediate early genes in social insects: a tool to identify brain regions involved in complex behaviors and molecular processes underlying neuroplasticity in Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences (2019). 76(4) 637–651.
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Innate colour preference, individual learning and memory retention in the ant Camponotus blandus in Journal of Experimental Biology (2017). 220(18) 3315–3326.
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Early Duplication and Functional Diversification of the Opsin Gene Family in Insects in Molecular Biology and Evolution (2004). 21(8) 1583–1594.
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Visual constraints in foraging bumblebees: Flower size and color affect search time and flight behavior in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2001). 98(7) 3898–3903.
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