Dr. Isabelle Maiditsch

Forschungsinteressen

Meine Forschungsinteressen liegen im Bereich der akustischen Kommunikation bei Tieren, insbesondere bei Fischen, und umfassen folgende Themen:

• Intra- und interspezifische Kommunikation

• Akustische Kommunikation und Verhalten bei Fischen

• Einflüsse von Umwelt- und anthropogenen Faktoren auf Kommunikation und Verhalten

• Morphofunktion schallerzeugender Strukturen

• Wahrnehmung von Schall (auditorische Peripherie und Hörvermögen)

• Methoden und Analysen akustischer Signale

Meine aktuelle Forschung beschäftigt sich mit der funktionellen Morphologie des Innenohrs von Fischen, insbesondere von Knochenfischen (Teleostei) mit Fokus auf die Otophysan. Im Mittelpunkt steht das Zusammenspiel zwischen verschiedenen Hörstrukturen – der Schwimmblase, den sogenannten Weber’schen Gehörknöchelchen und den Otolithen im Innenohr. Ziel des Projekts ist es, zu verstehen, wie diese Strukturen gemeinsam dazu beitragen, Schallwellen wahrzunehmen und zu verarbeiten.

Um diese Prozesse sichtbar zu machen, nutzen wir Synchrotron-basierte, hochauflösende Tomographie. Durch den Einsatz zeitaufgelöster 4D-Tomographie können wir in situ Bewegungen und Funktionsabläufe in Echtzeit analysieren. Dieser methodische Fortschritt eröffnet neue Einblicke in die komplexe Funktionsweise des Hörsystems von Fischen und trägt wesentlich zum Verständnis der Evolution und Anpassung aquatischer Sinnesorgane bei.

Lebenslauf

Lebenslauf

Akademische Bildung
2016 – 2022 PhD, Universität Wien, Verhaltensbiologie und Bioakustik
2005 – 2013 Mag.rer.nat. (M.Sc.), Universität Wien, Verhaltensbiologie und Zoologie

Akademische Positionen
Juli 2023 – heute Postdoktorandin, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München

Juli 2022 – Juni 2023 Postdoktorandin, Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI), Schweiz

2018 - 2022 Doktorand in (FWF-Projekt P31045)

2014 - 2022 Lehrende an der Universität Wien

2012 - 2014 Tutorin (Universität Wien)

2011 - 2012 Wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin (FWF-Projekt P 22319)

Publikationen and Congress Contributions

Orcid: 0000-0002-2351-7809

Maiditsch IP, Schulz-Mirbach T, Heß M, Ladich F, Stampanoni M & Schlepütz CM (2025). A standing wave tube-like setup designed for tomographic imaging of the sound-induced motion patterns in fish hearing structures. BMC Biology, 23(1), 277. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-025-02388-4

Qu Q, Maiditsch IP, Heß M, Schulz-Mirbach T, Stampanoni M & Schlepütz CM (2025). Measurement of sub-micron motion of fish hearing structures in 4D synchrotron CT. Measurement, 117654. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.measurement.2025.117654

Maiditsch IP and Ladich F. (2023). Effects of noise on acoustic and visual signalling in the Croaking Gourami: differences in adaptation strategies in fish. Bioacoustics. doi.org/10.1080/09524622.2022.2086174

Maiditsch IP and Ladich F. (2022c). Noise-induced masking of hearing in a labyrinth fish: Effects on sound detection in croaking gouramis. PeerJ, 10, e14230. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.14230

Maiditsch IP and Ladich F. (2022b). Different sound characteristics produced by the left and right pectoral fins constitute a new form of lateralization in a vocal fish. Journal of Experimental Zoology Part A: Ecological and Integrative Physiology, 339(1), 112-119. DOI: 10.1002/jez.2660

Maiditsch IP, Ladich F, Heß M, Schlepütz CM and Schulz-Mirbach T. (2022). Revealing sound-induced motion patterns in fish hearing structures in 4D: a standing wave tube-like setup designed for high-resolution time-resolved tomography. Journal of Experimental Biology 225, jeb.243614. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.243614

Maiditsch IP and Ladich F. (2022a). Acoustic and visual adaptations to predation risk: A predator affects communication in vocal female fish. Current Zoology. Volume 68, Issue 2, Pages 149–157, https://doi.org/10.1093/cz/zoab049

Ladich F and Maiditsch IP. (2020). Temperature affects sound production in fish with two sets of sonic organs: the Pictus cat. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology A 240, 110589. DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2019.110589

Schulz-Mirbach T, Ladich F, Mittone A, Olbinado M, Bravin A, Maiditsch IP, Melzer RR, Krysl P and Heß M. (2020). Auditory chain reaction: Effects of sound pressure and particle motion on auditory structures in fishes. PLoS One 15(3): e0230578. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0230578

Ladich F and Maiditsch IP. (2018). Acoustic signalling in female fish: factors influencing sound characteristics in croaking gouramis. Bioacoustics, 27:4, 377-390, DOI: 10.1080/09524622.2017.1359669

Maiditsch IP and Ladich F. (2014). Effects of temperature on auditory sensitivity in eurythermal fishes: common carp Cyprinus carpio (Family Cyprinidae) versus wels catfish Silurus glanis (Family Siluridae). PLOS ONE 9, e108583. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0108583

Maiditsch I, Liedtke HC, Ng'Wava JM, Hödl W. (2011). Advertisement and close-range encounter call of Arthroleptis schubotzi Nieden, 1911, with notes on phonotaxis and sexual dimorphism in the third manual digit (Anura: Arthroleptidae). Herpetozoa 24_1_2: 23-31.

Congress Contributions

1. Maiditsch IP, Schulz-Mirbach T, Ladich F, Stampanoni M, Heß M & Schlepütz CM (2025). Tomographic Imaging using an experimental standing wave tube-like setup to explore moving fish hearing structures. 188th Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America, joint with 25th International Congress on Acoustics, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA (Talk).

2. Maiditsch IP, Schlepütz CM, Heß M, Schulz-Mirbach T. (2024). Shedding X-ray light on the sound-induced motion patterns of hearing structures in fish, focusing on the saccular otolith in three catfish species. 116th Annual Meeting of the German Zoological Society (DZG), Stuttgart, Germany (Talk).

3. Maiditsch IP, Schulz-Mirbach T, Heß M, Schlepütz CM. (2024). Exploring moving fish hearing structures: Tomographic Imaging using an experimental standing wave tube-like setup and its implications for aquatic research. 116th Annual Meeting of the German Zoological Society (DZG), Stuttgart, Germany (Poster à Winner Best Poster Award in the topic morphology).

4. Schlepütz CM, Maiditsch IP, Schmeltz M, Ivanovic A, Qu Q, Wimmer W, Heß M, Anschuetz L, Schulz-Mirbach T, Bonnin A, Stampanoni M. (2024). Revealing sound-induced motion patterns in auditory systems with retrospectively gated time-resolved X-ray microtomography. International Conference on X-Ray Microscopy, Lund, Sweden.

5. Schlepütz CM, Maiditsch IP, Qu Q, Heß M, Schulz-Mirbach T. (2024). Revealing sound-induced motion patterns in the auditory system of fish. International Conference on Tomography of Materials and Structures (ICTMS), South Africa, Africa.

6. Maiditsch IP, Schlepütz CM, Qu Q, Ladich F, Heß M, Schulz-Mirbach T. (2023). 4D tomography sheds light on how shape variation leads to differences in otolith motion patterns in three catfish species. 7th International Otolith Symposium Viña del Mar Chile (Abstract).

7. Maiditsch IP, Limburg KE, Schulz-Mirbach T. (2023). Can marine multi-stressors make you deaf? 7th International Otolith Symposium Viña del Mar Chile (Poster)

8. Maiditsch IP, Schulz-Mirbach T, Qu Q, Heß M, Schlepütz CM. (2023). Shedding X-ray light on the sound-induced motion patterns of the inner ear in two model species, the zebrafish and the glass catfish. XVII European Congress of Ichthyology, Praha, Czech Republic (Talk).

9. Maiditsch IP. (2022). Sound transmission from the Weberian apparatus to the inner ears: New insights into motion patterns of auditory structures in fishes. International HEARING workshop, Ascona, Switzerland (Keynote lecture)

10. Maiditsch IP. (2022). Innovations in hearing research methodologies. International HEARING workshop, Ascona, Switzerland (Talk-Basic science round table)

11. Maiditsch IP. (2022). Acoustic and visual adaptations to predation risk: A predator affects communication in vocal female fish. CoBeNe PhD Academy Online Conference (Talk).

12. Schulz-Mirbach, T CM Schlepütz, Heß M, Gstöhl SJ, Maiditsch IP, Ladich F. (2021). The Weberian apparatus in action: How do the auditory structures of otophysan fishes interact during sound exposure? 92nd Annual Meeting of the Paläontologische Gesellschaft, Vienna, Austria.

13. Schulz-Mirbach T, Mittone A, Olbinado M, Schlepütz C, Ladich F, Maiditsch IP, Krysl P, Melzer R, Heß M. (2019). How do fish otliths and ancillary hearing structures move in a sound field? Insights from synchrotron radiation-based imaging. Palaeo & Life 2019: 137, Munich, Germany.

14. Maiditsch IP, Ladich F. (2019). Predation threat and acoustic communication in Croaking Gouramis (Labyrinth Fishes) International Bioacoustics Congress, Brighton, UK (Poster)

15. Maiditsch IP, Ladich F. (2019). Predation threat and acoustic communication in Croaking Gouramis (Labyrinth Fishes) Graduate summer school “Acoustic Communication", Denmark (Poster)