This website summarizes the science and research of The 3D Lab, the ‘virtual lab’ surrounding Jonas Lembrechts, currently assistant professor in ecological scaling at Utrecht University in the Netherlands (and lead scientist at De Oorzaak, the large-scale citizen science project from the University of Antwerp, Belgium).
In The 3D Lab, we are devoted to Discover Dynamic Distributions in three (or even four) dimensions, the study of species distributions and the effect of humans on our biodiversity and the environment in space (x, y, z) and time (t). We explore how we can improve our understanding of ecological patterns and processes by including local measures of abiotic conditions (e.g. microclimate) and biotic interactions, and see how we can scale up these local factors to regional and global scales.
Together with Dr. Yann Hautier, we form the section on ‘ecological scaling’ in the Ecology & Biodiversity research group at Utrecht University. Together, we aim to combine a variety of methods (observations, experiments, modelling, citizen science) in our search for a better understanding of how local ecological mechanisms operate at the global scale. In that regard, I personally have a special fondness for microclimate, as lead of the global SoilTemp-database, and for mountain biodiversity, as co-coordinator of the Mountain Invasion Research Network (MIREN).
Recently, citizen science has become an even more fundamental part of our work in The 3D Lab, focussing on environmental monitoring using large-scale sensor networks, including projects on microclimate (‘CurieuzeNeuzen in de Tuin’, CNidT), air quality (‘CurieuzeNeuzen’) and soundscapes (‘De Oorzaak’). I am now most actively involved in the latter, as lead scientist of the highly interdisciplinary team at the University of Antwerp working on this project..
Assistant professor
Ecological Scaling
Ecology & Biodiversity (E&B)
Utrecht University
Utrecht, the Netherlands
‘De Oorzaak’
University of Antwerp
Wilrijk, Belgium
Contact details
Publication list: Google Scholar
Main projects
SoilTemp (www.soiltempproject.com)
MIREN, the Mountain Invasion Research Network (www.mountaininvasions.org)
De Oorzaak (www.deoorzaak.be)
Abisko Fingerprints of Change
Forest-Web.3.0 (www.forestweb3.com)
CurieuzeNeuzen (www.curieuzeneuzen.be)
CitizenWise (www.citizenwise.org)
Current PhD candidates and postdocs
Dr. Bedassa Cheneka
University of Antwerp, Belgium
(website)
Stijn Van De Vondel
University of Antwerp, Belgium
w/ Filip Meysman and Ivan Nijs (website)
Katoria Lesaalon Lekarkar
Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium
w/ Ann Van Griensven and Anne Gobin (website)
‘Satellite’ PhDs and postdocs
Mink Verschoor (Utrecht University, the Netherlands, w/ Kathryn Barry & Yann Hautier), Dave Klinges (University of Florida, USA, w/ Brent Scheffers), Stef Haesen (KULeuven, Belgium, w/ Koenraad Van Meerbeek), Charly Géron (Université de Rennes, France, w/ David Renault), Francisco Velasquez (University of Houston, Texas, w/ Martin Nuñez), Eduardo Fuentes-Lillo (University of Concepcíon, Chile, w/ Aníbal Pauchard), Ablenya Barros (University of Antwerp, Belgium, w/ Cedric Vuye)
Previous PhD candidates
Jan Clavel (University of Antwerp, Belgium), Ronja Wedegärtner (Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway), Charly Géron (Université de Liège, Belgium), Eduardo Fuentes-Lillo (University of Concepcíon, Chile)
Current master students:
1. SoilTemp
Willard Loots, The botanical garden as a refuge against climate change.
Alma Espinoza Martinez. The botanical garden as a refuge against climate change for arthropods. w/ Pierre Meerts & Patrick Mardulyn.
Sarane Coen, The impact of rock climbing on cliff vegetation.
2. MIREN
Tist Liekens. Plant invasion along mountain trails.
3. Fingerprints of change
Beau Ramaekers. Phenology of alpine plants. w/ Keith Larson.
Brent Wouters. Historical changes in snowbed species. w/ Keith Larson.
Emma Pellegrini. Using citizen science data to update the biogeography of bumblebees in Northern Sweden. w/ Richard Gill.
Floor Mergan, Lowland vegetation invading into the alpine tundra – studying the impact on vegetation structure using historical data.
Marin De Beule, Intraspecific trait variability along a microclimatic gradient in the Scandinavian mountains. w/ Richard Gill.
Jelte Nackaerts, Mapping the microclimate of the Scandinavian mountains, and testing its role in ecological research.
Jeanne Terragno, Revisiting historical plant surveys at the base of a rapidly receding glacier. w/ Keith Larson.
4. CurieuzeNeuzen
Julie Blanjean, Wetlands4Cities: de vele voordelen van natte natuur voor de stad – een temperatuur- en droogte-perspectief. w/Stijn Van de Vondel
5. De Oorzaak
Limke Van Laenen. De Oorzaak
Klaas Van de Vyver, Spatiotemporal patterns of bird song and sounds in the city.
Sara Cocquyt, Quiet green spaces around the university hospital.
Lieselotte Van Laere, Quiet green spaces around the university hospital.
Dieter Smolderen, The impact of urbanization on bird song.
Rima Saadouni & Hajar Takhrifa, De Oorzaak – validation of and objective measurements with smart sound sensors.
Limke Van Laenen, De Oorzaak – subjectieve beleving en objectieve metingen van verkeersgeluid.
Casper Mommen, Impact van groen op geluidsbeleving in de stad.
Maarten Geens, Beleving van natuurgeluiden in stedelijk gebied.
Previous master students:
Andreas De Preter, Violetta Chernoray, Zeynep Cetin, Jelle Hijlkema, Tom Vermeire, Millie Lejeune, Janessa Rathgeber, Inez Vanhoutte, Jasmine Spreeuwers, Sarane Coen, Amber Pirée, Renée Lejeune, Lore Hostens (website), Dymphna Wiegmans, Kobe Tilley, Jens De Keyser, Bindia-Roy Jaddoe, Aaron Van Poecke, Jef Vanwinkelen, Maria Van Assche, Nell Van den Plas, Naomi De Vries, Eef Derez, Bram Vanheule, Sam Vastmans, Ilias Janssens, Robin Halffman, Maria-Rose Eves-Down, Amélie De La Rocha Rotta, Jan Clavel (website), Sebastien Leys (website), Gilles Bussé, Sharissa Balliauw, Arne Ven (website), Niels Van Putte (website), Nina Roth (website), Charly Geron (website).
This website was born in October 2013, when I started my PhD at the University of Antwerp, with the main goal to combine my passion for ecology, writing and photography and to illustrate all aspects of a PhD-student’s life. Now, the website has grown into a way to communicate all our scientific discoveries and fieldwork adventures to you.
The 3D lab 
Hi, wonderful job you’ve got and wonderful blog. Thanks for following my blog thereby letting me find yours. Looking forward to your posts. Best of Luck! 🙂
Thanks! I really liked the pictures on your blog, so following was a must :). I hope it results in reciprocal inspiration! Good luck for you too
Hello. You have an interesting jog.
Merry Christmas
Hi Jonas! Thank you for visiting and following HoB. Much appreciated! Maar vermoedelijk had ik dit ook in het Nederlands kunnen zeggen…??
Dat klopt, zolang ik het officiële ‘kats’ niet versta, kan Nederlands wel heel goed werken :D. Ik was ook verbaasd die leuke kat zo dichtbij huis te vinden!
Hello Jonas! Thanks for following A Journey of Wonders (www.journeywonders.com), I’m sure you’ll enjoy reading about my travel adventures as well as my tips for saving money in order to travel more 😀
Hi there Jonas,
Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the blogosphere and for following. Your support is greatly appreciated, Looking forward to seeing more from you 🙂
Eddie
Always nice to share our adventures with other people! I will definitely keep an eye on your blog!
Thanks for following my blog 🙂 your blog is great, I look forward to seeing your photos
I was just very happy to find a fellow blogging PhD-er! It will be nice to follow you, your life and your scientific work :).
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Hi Jonas!
My name is Maria and along with other four gorgeous ladies we have a small travel/photography blog. We have been following your blog for a while and we really enjoy your pictures! The sceneries are just wonderful and the composition you chose always gives an amazing result! We decided to nominate your blog for the Liebster award,a collaborative award that was created to motivate small bloggers to keep creating ,link with other bloggers and discover new blogs with great content. You can find our blog proposals and rules on our blog post: http://t.co/aiIEF7IXHO.
We really hope you will accept our award! Good luck with your phd!
Cheers!
Hi Maria!
Thanks for the very kind words, it is a joy to write and post for readers as enthusiastic as you! Thanks also for the nomination for the award, it is great to read such things.
I am currently not passing on awards, I am afraid, even not when they are from such a wonderful and interesting blog.
I am howeve very happy that I now found my way to your fantastic spot on the internet, and I am definitely going to come back to enjoy your pictures and stories!
Thanks for your kind words! No problem for the award, for us rather than awarding blogs it was much more an opportunity to discover new blogs and connect to other bloggers which is happening right now as we are writing to each other so…goal achieved!:)
Thanks for dropping by, Jonas, and following our adventures. Reading about you, it’s fantastic when work and hobbies blend together well – makes for an interesting and fulfilling life. 😊
Thanks for that! I love your travel stories, so I’ll definitely come back!
What a lovely blog Jonas, your photos are incredibly beautiful! 🙂
Thanks a lot, Elina, always makes me happy to get such comments!
I am looking forward to seeing more of your pictures and reading about all of your plant knowledge. Thanks for visiting my blog today!
Thanks! Glad to share everything with you 🙂
Merhaba Jonas…
Here’s a little New Years message from Türkiye to say “thank you”. I appreciate your recent ‘follow’, knowing how many interesting and entertaining blogs there are out there.
Blogging since June 2013, my little corner of the world tries to offer an eclectic smattering of posts, from basic amateur photography, to sharing my travel adventures over the decades, as well as day-to-day happenings here on our fruit farm in southern Turkey. I also throw in a few of my observations on life and lighter-hearted stuff for good measure.
You are more than welcome to have a look around, stay a while and have a trawl through my collection. There are plenty of categories within the drop-down menus to help in said digging process. Of course, if you have any comments, suggestions or concerns, feel free to let me know – I’m not easily offended 🙂
Hope you have a great day and even better 2015…
UNCLE SPIKE
uncle.spikes.adventures1@gmail.com
Hello Jonas!
My name is Susan Xu and I am the content manager and chief writer at Clapway, a New York based multi-platform company that houses an extensive collection of articles, videos, and marketplace services with a focus on adventure and travel. I came across your blog and really enjoyed your posts. Would you potentially be interested in writing for Clapway as a contributor? If so, please email me back at content [at] clapway [dot] com. We would love to feature your work.
Best,
Susan Xu
Content Manager at Clapway
195 Plymouth St #6/17
Brooklyn, NY 11201
sx@clapway.com
Hi, I send you an e-mail, but unfortunately I am currently too busy with several writing projects to write for Clapway. I feel really honoured by your offer, though!
Jonas
Heya thank you for checking out my blog, I appreciate the follow. What an awesome job you have, I’m jealous! 😉 Looking forward to your posts 🙂
Thanks for the kind words! I am glad to find a reader in you, and I hope to share some thoughts on Plants with a fellow enthusiast :D.
Likewise! You’re very welcome, always great to meet another passionate plantsperson 😀
A nature fanatic like myself finds your work Incredible esp. with all the pics you’ve taken. I’m facinated by all of them. Kuddos!
Thanks a lot for the nice comment, I’ll try to keep you fascinated ;).
Really pleased to have found your fascinating blog. I’m going to learn a lot while being entertained. Regards from Thom at the immortal jukebox (give it a whirl!)
Thanks for the nice comments! That is indeed the main aim of this little part of the internet, so I am glad to see you like it!
A pleasure. I hope you will take a look at the Jukebox. Thom
keep up the good work!
I will, I will, as the work is highly satisfactory 🙂
Gorgeous photos! And what an interesting job you have! I wish I had studied something interesting like that! (instead of boring old business studies)
Thanks a lot! I indeed feel lucky with this job and the opportunities it provides :). The chance to roam around in nature is worth a lot to me. But it seems from your page that you don’t miss out on the adventure, either, so don’t bother boring studies ;)!
I try! 😉
Thanks for visiting my blog, Jonas and ‘liking’ my post. I love it that you’re a photographing ecologist!
You’re welcome! And I love being a photographing ecologist myself ;).
Thank you for visiting my first 18
Some things just easily catch the eye 🙂
Great to see so many lovely pictures of places I’ve been.
Glad to hear that :-). Thanks for visiting!
What an amazing job you have. Ecology is something I would like to know more about as I am interested in permaculture as a means of regenerating ecosystems.
Peace.
Thanks! And indeed an amazing job, I wouldn’t complain about any part of it. And I can only confirm ecology is an interesting and highly important study area :). Thanks for visiting!
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Thanks for visiting!
A friend of mine studies primulas in mountain environments around the world. I have passed on your blog info to her and she’s excited to read some of your work.
Thanks a lot, very kind of you. Hoping I can inspire!
This is her blog, if you’re interested… https://primulaworld.blogspot.ca/
Cool, thanks! Never realised there were so many Primula-species :)!
She’s a woman on a mission! The way she uses google maps to find places around the world to search for them is incredible.
Hi. You have an interesting blog, with some great photos and insightful articles. Looking forward to reading more.
Hi I am a landscape architect and conservationist in New Zealand. I am Chair of a voluntary conservation group working in the Lindis Pass Otago New Zealand, a subalpine rain-shadow mountainous pass area altitude 800 – 1400m. Our work is in part controlling the spread of Russell Lupin from the highway that passes through the area.We have observed other exotic opportunist plants such as viola on the road side. I would love to have a copy of your paper please.
Hi! Thanks for your interest in our work! Most of our papers are freely available on ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jonas_Lembrechts.
Let me know if you don’t find what you’re looking for there, and always happy to discuss things further!
Interesting working area/subject, by the way!
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