David Schellenberger Costa

David Schellenberger Costa is a Researcher employed as a PostDoc at the University of Leipzig and the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), focusing on the PlantHub project. His work links biodiversity data from iDiv and partner institutions to enhance scientific collaboration and public accessibility. Previously, he held PostDoc roles at Friedrich Schiller University Jena and Carl-von-Ossietzky University Oldenburg, investigating nitrogen deposition effects on forests and plant functional traits.

Education:

• PhD in Landscape Ecology (Carl-von-Ossietzky University, 2016)
• Magisternebenfach in Mathematics (University of Leipzig, 2010)
• Diploma in Biology (University of Leipzig, 2008), specializing in tropical ecology and botany

Research Interests: Integrating biodiversity data, plant functional traits, climate change impacts, vegetation dynamics, and land-use effects. Projects include historical vegetation surveys in Germany and functional trait studies on Mount Kilimanjaro.

Grants & Projects:

• PlantHub: Biodiversity data integration (since 2021)
• StickstoffBW: Nitrogen deposition in German forests (2017–2021)

Labs/Teams: Core member of iDiv's Central Management and PlantHub collaboration network.