Gabriele Gerlach

Prof. Dr. Gabriele Gerlach is a Professor at the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg, affiliated with the Institute of Biology and Environmental Sciences (IBU). Her primary academic role is within Faculty 5: Mathematics and Natural Sciences. She specializes in evolutionary mechanisms of marine organisms, particularly focusing on speciation processes in coral reef fish. Her research investigates how ecological niches and genetic divergence drive biodiversity despite larval dispersal.

Her work includes long-term studies on the Capricorn-Bunker Group in the Great Barrier Reef, analyzing genetic divergence across populations over ten generations. She explores larval imprinting on natal environments and the role of olfactory cues in natal recruitment. Gerlach teaches courses such as Molecular Ecology and Biodiversity and Animal Evolution, and her office is located at W04 2-249, Carl-von-Ossietzky-Str. 9-11, Oldenburg.