Local species communities are shaped by the prevailing environmental conditions, interactions between species and stochasticity, working together as assembly processes. Understanding how these processes affect species communities is central for predicting biodiversity responses to the ongoing environmental change. Wood-inhabiting fungi provide an interesting study system for examining assembly processes since they are highly interactive and environment-sensitive.

In my PhD, I study how assembly processes affect colonization and dynamics in wood-inhabiting fungal communities. My main interest is to disentangle the role of interspecific interactions and stochasticity. How the existing communities influence the colonization success of newly arriving species? How predictable is the colonization success under identical abiotic and biotic conditions? To address these questions, I simulate natural colonization by reintroducing threatened wood-inhabiting fungi. Besides gaining insights into the general theory of community ecology, I will also apply the results to assess whether reintroductions could function as a novel conservation tool for these species.