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Patrick Kuss

 

 

Interests

I am interested in Pedicularis, a hemiparasitic plant genus, that seems to prefer habitats that I like to explore: mountains and the Arctic. The genus is pretty speciose and has its center of diversity in the Eastern Himalayas. Many of the hitherto described taxa are still unresolved and a thorogh revision is timely. Genetics can help to discriminate between entities but the ground work is still done by comparing morphological characters and investigating a species ecology.

My second interest is teaching botany, to students at institutions for higher education, to professionals with a focus on habitat mapping and ecological assessment work, and to the many enthusiasts within the general public who simply like to learn about plants, plant ecology and vegetation patterns.

One part of teaching botany is to certify botanical skills. I am active in developing and revising the rules & regulations for a number of public certification initiatives both in Germany (BANU, KennArt) and in Switzerland (InfoFlora). The framework for certifying botanical skills have recently been adapted for animal taxa such as birds, amphibians, reptiles, and dragon flies. More are in the pipeline.

  

Education & professional work

Since 2024 Associated researcher & lecturer, University of Freiburg, Germany
Since 2023 CEO Feldbotanik Patrick Kuss
2012-2014 Sibbald Trust Fellow, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, Scotland
2011-2024 Associated researcher & lecturer, University of Zurich, Switzerland
2010 CAS Teaching in Higher Education, University of Berne, Switzerland
2007-2011 PostDoc, University of Berne, Switzerland
2006-2007 PostDoc, University of Alaska Fairbanks, USA
2006 PhD in Botany, University of Basel, Switzerland
2003 Diploma in Biology, University of Freiburg, Germany

   

Science Projects

  • Revision of Pedicularis for the Flora of Nepal
  • The endemic Pedicularis taxa of Bhutan
  • Molecular phylogeny of Pedicularis

 

Outreach

 

Publications


  • Kuss, P. (2024) Nasenblumen, lausige Kräuter und andere halbe Parasiten. FloraCH Nr. 18, 4-9. (pdf)
  • Kuss, P. (2023) Welche Standards wollen wir? Qualitätssicherung bei der Reetablierung von taxonomischem Wissen. Ein Beispiel aus der Botanik. Beiträge der Akademie für Natur-und Umweltschutz Baden-Württemberg 60: 57-63. Hirzel, Stuttgart
  • Kuss, P., Pagitz. K., Eggenberg, S. (2021) Feldbotanikzertifizierung
    in der Schweiz, Österreich und Südwestdeutschland (Certificates for field botany
    in Switzerland, Austria and south-western Germany). Natur und Landschaft 96 (9/10): 444-449. doi: 10.17433/9.2021.50153945.444-449 (Abstract/Zusammenfassung).
  • Epstein, H.E., Walker, D.A., Frost, G.V., Raynolds, M.K., Bhatt, U., Daanen, R., Forbes, B., Geml, J., Kaärlejarvi, E., Khitun, O., Khomutov, A., Kuss, P., Leibman, M., Matyshak, G., Moskalenko, N., Orekhov, P., Romanovsky, V.E., Timling, I. (2021). Spatial patterns of arctic tundra vegetation properties on different soils along the Eurasia Arctic Transect, and insights for a changing Arctic. Environmental Research Letters 16 014008 (Abstract/Zusammenfassung).
  • Midolo G., Kuss, P., Wellstein, C. (2021) Land use and water availability drive community-level plant functional diversity of grasslands along a temperature gradient in the Swiss Alps. Science of the Total Environment. 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.142888 (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Kuss, P. (2019) Neue Artenkennerinnen und Artenkenner braucht
    das Land: Erfolgreiche Feldbotanikkurse und Zertifizierung in der Schweiz. DNT Journal 2019: 272-278. (pdf, Vortragsfolien)
  • Kuss, P. (2019) Die Inseln der glückseligen Botaniker – Flora und Vegetation der Kanarischen Inseln. Schweizerische Beiträge zur Dendrologie 69-70: 78-81. (pdf)
  • Walker, D.A., Epstein, H., Šibík, J., Bhatt, U., Romanovsky, V., Breen, A., Chasnikova, S., Daanen, R., Druckenmiller, L., Ermokhina, K., Frost, J., Geml, J., Kaarlejärvi, E., Khitun, O., Khomutov, A., Kuss, P., Matyshak, G., Moskalenko, N., Orekhov, P., Peirce, J., Raynolds, M., Timling I. (2019) Vegetation on mesic loamy and sandy soils along a 1700‐km maritime Eurasia Arctic Transect. Applied Vegetation Science 22 (1): 150-167. doi: 10.1111/avsc.12401 (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Li W.-J., Sui X.-L., Kuss, P.., Liu Y.-Y., Li A.-R., Guan K-.Y. (2016) Long-Distance Dispersal after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) Led to the Disjunctive Distribution of Pedicularis kansuensis (Orobanchaceae) between the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and  Tianshan Region. PLoS ONE 11(11): e0165700. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0165700 (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Sui X.-L., Kuss, P., Li W.-J., Yang M.-G. Guan K.-Y. Li A.-R. (2016) Identity and distribution of weedy Pedicularis kansuensis Maxim. (Orobanchaceae) in Tianshan Mountains of Xinjiang: morphological, anatomical and molecular evidence. Journal of Arid Land (2016) 8(3): 453–461. doi: 10.1007/s40333-016-0004-0 (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Liu, M.-L., Yu, W.-B., Kuss, P., Li, D.-Z., Wang, H. (2015). Floral nectary morphology and evolution in Pedicularis (Orobanchaceae). Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 178:592-607 (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Kuss, P., Ree, R.H., (2015). Reproductive biology of Pedicularis (Orobanchaceae) in Nepal. In: Miehe, G. & Pendry, C.A. (eds.). Nepal. An introduction to the natural history, ecology and human environment of the Himalayas. Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Edinburgh. ISBN 978-1-910877-02-9 (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Tkach, N., Ree, R.H., Kuss, P., Röser, M., Hoffmann, M.H. (2014) High mountain origin, phylogenetics, evolution, and niche conservatism of arctic lineages in the hemiparasitic genus Pedicularis (Orobanchaceae), Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2014.03.004 (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Yu, W.-B., Kuss, P., Wang, H., Ree, R., Li, D.-Z. (2014) Lectotypification of Linnaean names in Pedicularis (Orobanchaceae). Taxon 63 (1): 172–176. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Oehl, F., Palenzuela, J., Sánchez-Castro, I. , Kuss, P., Sieverding, E., da Silva, G.A. (2012) Acaulospora nivalis, a new fungus in the Glomeromycetes, characteristic for high alpine and nival altitudes of the Swiss Alps. Nova Hedwigia 95: 105–122.
  • Walker, D.A., Epstein, H.E., Raynolds, M.K., Kuss, P., Kopecky, M.A., Frost, G.V., Daniëls, F.J.A., Leibman, M.O., Moskalenko, N.G., Matyshak, G.V., Khitun, O.V., Khomutov, A.V., Forbes, B.C., Bhatt, U.,S., Kade, A.N., Vonlanthen, C.M., Tichý, L.(2012) Environment, vegetation and greenness (NDVI) along the North America and Eurasia Arctic transects. Environ. Res. Lett 7 (1), S. 15504. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Kuss, P., Armbruster, G., Scheepens, J.F., Ægisdóttir, H.H., & Stöcklin, J. (2011) Spatial genetic structure of Campanula thyrsoides across the European Alps: Indications for glaciation-driven allopatric subspeciation. Perspectives in Plant Ecology Evolution and Systematics, 13, 101-110. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Walker, D.A., Kuss, P., Epstein, H.E., Kade, A.N., Vonlanthen, C., Raynolds, M.K., & Daniëls, F.J.A. (2011) Vegetation of zonal patterned-ground ecosystems along the North America Arctic bioclimate gradient. Applied Vegetation Science 44, 4, 440-463. Doi: 10.1111/j.1654-109X.2011.01149.x (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Scheepens, J.F., Kuss, P., & Stöcklin, J. (2011) Morphological, reproductive and phenological differentiation between two Campanula thyrsoides L. subspecies and its adaptive significance. Alpine Botany, 1, 37-47. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Wellstein, C. & Kuss, P. (2011) Diversity and frequency of clonal traits along natural and land-use gradients in grasslands of the Swiss Alps. Folia Geobotanica, 46, 255-270. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Walker, D., Bhatt, U., Raynolds, M., Romanovsky, V., Kofinas, G., Kuss, P., Forbes, B., Stammler, F., Kumpula, T., Kaarlejärvi, E., Leibman, M., Moskalenko, N., Gubarkov, A., Khomutov, A., Drozdov, D., Epstein, H., Yu, Q., Jia, G., Kaplan, J., & Comiso, J. (2011). Cumulative effects of rapid land-cover and land-use changes on the Yamal Peninsula, Russia. In: Gutman, G. & Reissell, A. (eds.) Eurasian Arctic Land Cover and Land Use in a Changing Climate. pp. 207-236. Springer, Heidelberg. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Kuss, P. (2011). Competence-oriented Bachelor seminars (Kompetenzorientierte Planung eines Bachelor-Seminars). In: Wehr-Rappo, S. & Tribelhorn, T (eds.) Bolognagerechte Hochschullehre. Beiträge aus der hochschuldidaktischen Praxis. Haupt Verlag, Bern. Pp. 37-61. (in German)(pdf)
  • Kuss, P. (2011) Vegetation of Europe (Die gehölzfreie Vegetation im europäischen Überblick). Bauhinia, 23. (book review of Klötzli, F. et al. Vegetation Europas. hep Verlag, Bern (2010). (in German) (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Kuss, P. (2010) Book review: The Biology of Alpine Habitats, L. Nagy, G. Grabherr. Oxford University Press, Oxford (2009). Basic and Applied Ecology 11:93 (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Stöcklin, J., Kuss, P. & Pluess, A.R. (2009). Genetic diversity, phenotypic variation and local adaptation in the alpine landscape: case studies with Alpine plant species. Botanica Helvetica 119:125-133. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Ægisdóttir, H.H., Kuss, P. & Stöcklin, J. (2009). Isolated populations of a rare alpine plant show high genetic diversity and considerable population differentiation. Annals of Botany. doi:10.1093/aob/mcp242 (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Walker, D.A., Leibman, M.O., Epstein, H.E., Forbes, B.C., Bhatt, U.S., Raynolds, M.K., Comiso, J.C., Gubarkov, A.A., Khomutov, A.A., Jia, G.J., Kaarlejärvi, E., Kaplan, J.O., Kumpula, T., Kuss, P., Matyshak, G., Moskalenko, N.G., Orekhov, P., Romanovsky, V.E., Ukraientseva, N.G. & Yu, Q. (2009). Spatial and temporal patterns of greenness on the Yamal Peninsula, Russia: Interactions of ecological and social factors affecting Arctic NDVI. Environmental Research Letters, 4, 045004. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Kuss, P. (2009) Urban Neophytes (Neubürger im Stadtgebiet). Bauhinia, 21, 61-62. (book review of Pils P et al. (2008) Neophytenflora der Stadt Salzburg (Österreich) Sauteria, Band 17, Verlag Alexander Just, Dorfbeuern/Salzburg) (in German) (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Kuss, P., Rees, M., Ægisdóttir, H.H., Ellner, S.P. & Stöcklin, J. (2008). Evolutionary demography of long-lived monocarpic perennials: a time-lagged integral projection model. Journal of Ecology, 96, 821–832. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Kuss, P., Pluess, A.R., Aegisdottir, H.H. & Stöcklin, J. (2008). Spatial isolation and genetic differentiation in naturally fragmented plant populations of the Swiss Alps. Journal of Plant Ecology, 1, 149 – 159. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Vonlanthen, C.M., Walker, D.A., Raynolds, M.K., Kade, A., Kuss, P., Daniëls, F.J.A. & Matveyeva, N.V. (2008). Patterned-ground plant communities along a bioclimate gradient in the High Arctic, Canada. Phytocoenologia, 38, 23-63. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Walker, D.A., Epstein, H.E., Romanovsky, V.E., Ping, C.L., Michaelson, G.J., Daanen, R.P., Shur, Y., Peterson, R.A., Krantz, W.B., Raynolds, M.K., Gould, W.A., Gonzalez, G., Nicolsky, D.J., Vonlanthen, C.M., Kade, A., Kuss, P., Kelley , A.M., Munger, C.A., Tarnocai, C.T., Matveyeva, N.V. & Daniëls, F.J.A. (2008). Arctic patterned-ground ecosystems: A synthesis of field studies and models along a North American Arctic Transect. Journal of Geophysical Research, 113, G03S01. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Kuss, P. & Walker, D.A. (2008). Project for interlinked Arctic flora and vegetation databases. CAFF Technical Report No. 15, 63-65. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Kuss, P., Ægisdóttir, H.H. & Stöcklin, J. (2007). The biological flora of Central Europe: Campanula thyrsoides L. Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics, 9, 37-51. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Ægisdóttir, H.H., Jespersen, D., Kuss, P. & Stöcklin, J. (2007). No inbreeding depression in an outcrossing alpine species: The breeding system of Campanula thyrsoides. Flora, 202, 218-225. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Ægisdóttir, H.H., Koller, B., Kuss, P. & Stöcklin, J. (2007). Development and characterization of microsatellite DNA markers for the Alpine plant species Campanula thyrsoides. Molecular Ecology Notes, 7, 996-997. (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Fischer, M., Kuss, P. & Stöcklin, J. (2007). Neophytische Opuntien im Sukkulentenbusch auf Teneriffa. Bauhinia, 20, 35-44. (in German). (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Kuss, P. (2006) The ecology of fire. Schweizer Beiträge zur Dendrologie 49:62-65. (in German)
  • Kuss, P. (2005) Fascination Mountain Biota (Faszination Gebirgswelt). Bauhinia 19:70-71. (book review of Burga, C.A., Klötzli, F. & Grabherr, G. (2004). Gebirge der Erde. Ulmer Verlag, Stuttgart, Germany) (in German) (Abstract/Zusammenfassung)
  • Kuss, P., Raidl S, Beenken L et al. (2004) Cortinarius huronensis Ammirati & Smith var. huronensis + Pinus rotundata Link. Descriptions of Ectomycorrhizae 7/8:21-27.

  

 

 
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