Prof. Heinz Müller-Schärer from the University of Fribourg, Switzerland, visited IHB on Nov. 26, 2025. (Credit: IHB)

On the afternoon of November 26, 2025, Prof. Heinz Müller-Schärer from the University of Fribourg, Switzerland, was invited to deliver a distinguished academic lecture at the Institute of Hydrobiology (IHB) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). His presentation, entitled “Towards Predicting Evolutionary Outcomes in Weed Biocontrol,” marked the ninth installment of IHB’s 2025 Innovation Lecture Series. 

The lecture focused on the role of evolutionary processes in biological control of invasive plants and their implications for predictive applications. Prof. Müller-Schärer provided a comprehensive overview of the theoretical foundations and recent advances in Introduced Biological Weed Control (IBWC). He emphasized how post-release evolutionary changes in biocontrol agents represent a critical source of uncertainty in both efficacy and risk assessment. 

Using the well-studied interaction between common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) and its natural enemies as a case study, Prof. Müller-Schärer illustrated the real-world consequences of eco-evolutionary dynamics in biocontrol systems. His research demonstrates that under dual selective pressures, i.e., climate warming and herbivory, ragweed has evolved a combination of high growth rates and enhanced defensive traits, potentially undermining control efforts. In contrast, the ragweed leaf beetle (Ophraella communa), a key biocontrol agent, showed no significant signs of adaptive evolution when exposed to strong selection pressures from non-target plant species, supporting the ecological safety and host specificity of this biocontrol system. 

Prof. Müller-Schärer underscored that accurately forecasting adaptive evolution in both target weeds and biocontrol agents is essential to improving the controllability, sustainability, and predictability of future biological control programs. 

A globally recognized authority in invasion ecology and biological control, Prof. Müller-Schärer has held numerous leadership roles, including President of the Swiss Academy of Sciences, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Founding Dean of the School of Environment at the University of Fribourg, and member of the Scientific Council of the Swiss National Science Foundation. With over 300 peer-reviewed publications in top-tier journals such as Trends in Ecology & Evolution, Ecology Letters, Ecology, and Journal of Ecology, he holds an impressive H-index of 52. In 2024, he was honored as an International Distinguished Scholar under CAS’s President’s International Fellowship Initiative (PIFI).