Bas Bruning MSc

Hello, my name is Bas Bruning and I am a Ph.D student at Systems Ecology, Department of Ecological Sciences at VU University (Vrije Universiteit). I did most of my Bachelors degree here (part of the first year I studied in Spain, at the Universidad de Málaga) and I did the Ecology Master at Vrije Universiteit. During my internships I studied the influence of nutritional status of the host plant on its mycorrhizal associations (BSc internship) and my first MSc internship was about genetic variation in dispersal behaviour in a springtail, Orchesella cincta. I also wrote a literature review about differences in temperature reaction norms (Q10) across trophic levels. For my last MSc internship I went to northern Australia, to study the sexual behaviour of the introduced cane toad (Chaunus marinus). The picture of me with a black-headed python (Aspidites melanocephalus) was taken there. This internship resulted in a paper on a new mechanism of female mate choice in the Anura.

Research Project

After experiencing the above-described variety in internships I am now working on salt tolerance in nitrogen fixing plants. In this symbiotic relationship, both partners have to deal with the stresses associated with high salt concentrations in the environment. Salinity in agricultural fields is a worldwide problem and is predicted to increase under global warming scenarios. Many of the crops we eat are legumes (i.e. nitrogen fixing) and legumes are also used as a natural way to increase soil fertility (green manure). These two things together, the predicted increase of salt affected agricultural lands and the importance of legumes to us, make this a very relevant topic.

For this project I will study this symbiosis and its interaction with salt stress/tolerance both under controlled conditions in a greenhouse, as well as in the field on Texel, one of the Dutch islands.

Publication

Bruning B., Phillips B. L., Shine R. (2010) Turgid female toads give males the slip: a new mechanism of female mate choice in the Anura. Biology Letters Biol. Lett. 2010 6, 322-324    PDF