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Current Projects

1. Individual-Based Global Change Ecology (IBGCE) – UFS, University of Potsdam

As part of the IBGCE research focus, my work explores how individual-level variation in plant traits influences ecological interactions and ecosystem functioning under global change. I investigate how above-belowground linkages and cross-boundary interactions between adjacent ecosystems (e.g., crop-noncrop interfaces) shape biodiversity and resilience in agricultural landscapes.

2. Linde Wildflower Experiment – University of Potsdam

The Linde Wildflower Experiment examines how the age and spatial design of wildflower habitats affect plant and insect biodiversity in agricultural landscapes. My role focuses on the plant–insect interaction component, investigating how conventional flower strips and rolling wildflower blocks influence pollinator activity, insect diversity, and ecological connectivity between wildflower habitats and surrounding crops.

3. DCropS4OneHealth

Diversification of cropping systems has the potential to increase biodiversity and support human health by positively affecting health-relevant characteristics of the field including the produce-associated microbiome, health-promoting plant secondary metabolites, and reduced insecticide use. Within this framework, I focus on trait-based interactions between plants and insects, assessing how crop diversification and management intensity influence pollination, pest regulation, and trophic network stability.

Research Interests

• Intraspecific trait variation and ecosystem functioning
• Plant–insect interactions
• Trait-based and individual-based ecology
• Biodiversity and ecosystem resilience under global change
• Applied agroecology and sustainable systems
• Science communication and interdisciplinary collaboration

Education and Experience

Since October 2025 Postdoctoral researcher at University of Potsdam

2021 – 2024 Ph.D. Student at the Terrestrial Ecology Group, Technical University of Munich, (Germany)

2018 – 2020 MSc. Biology, major "Bio-interactions" at Wageningen University & Research (The Netherlands)

2015 – 2017 Researcher at FARIS (Fundamental and Applied Research in Insect Sensing), Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Universidad Nacional de Colombia (Colombia)

2008 – 2013 B.Sc. Biology, Universidad Nacional de Colombia (Colombia)

Publications

2025

Neuhaus-Harr, A., Ojeda-Prieto, L., Zhang, X., Schnitzler, J.-P., Weisser, W. W., & Heinen, R. (2025). Aphid colony size in tansy is affected by plant chemical composition but not by belowground herbivory. Journal of Chemical Ecology, 51(3), 63. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-025-01609-y

2024

Neuhaus-Harr, A.*, Ojeda-Prieto, L.*, Eilers, E., Müller, C., Weisser, W. W., & Heinen, R. (2024). Chemodiversity affects preference for Tanacetum vulgare chemotypes in two aphid species. Oikos, 2024(3), e10437. https://doi.org/10.1111/oik.10437

*shared first author

Ojeda-Prieto, L., Medina-van Berkum, P., Unsicker, S. B., Heinen, R., & Weisser, W. W. (n.d.). Intraspecific chemical variation of Tanacetum vulgare affects plant growth and reproductive traits in field plant communities. Plant Biology. https://doi.org/10.1111/plb.13646

Rahimova, H., Neuhaus-Harr, A., Clancy, M. V., Guo, Y., Junker, R. R., Ojeda-Prieto, L., Petrén, H., Senft, M., Zytynska, S. E., Weisser, W. W., Heinen, R., & Schnitzler, J. (2024). Geographic distribution of terpenoid chemotypes in Tanacetum vulgare mediates tansy aphid occurrence but not abundance. Oikos, e10320. https://doi.org/10.1111/oik.10320

Van De Zande, E. M., Ojeda-Prieto, L., Markou, A., Van Leemput, J., Van Loon, J. J. A., & Dicke, M. (2024). Enhanced parasitisation of caterpillars and aphids on field‐grownBrassica oleracea plants upon soil amendment with insect exuviae. Functional Ecology, 38(6), 1431–1446. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.14555

2023

Petrén, H., Anaia, R. A., Aragam, K. S., Bräutigam, A., Eckert, S., Heinen, R., Jakobs, R., Ojeda-Prieto, L., Popp, M., Sasidharan, R., Schnitzler, J.-P., Steppuhn, A., Thon, F., Tschikin, S., Unsicker, S. B., Van Dam, N. M., Weisser, W. W., Wittmann, M. J., Yepes, S., … Junker, R. R. (2023). Understanding the phytochemical diversity of plants: Quantification, variation and ecological function. https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.03.23.533415

2021

Gols, R., Ojeda-Prieto, L. M., Li, K., Van Der Putten, W. H., & Harvey, J. A. (2021). Within-patch and edge microclimates vary over a growing season and are amplified during a heatwave: Consequences for ectothermic insects. Journal of Thermal Biology, 99, 103006. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtherbio.2021.103006