Media Relations

Your guide to covering the science of MPI-AB

The Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior is home to an international team of around 200 world-class scientists and students who study the fascinating and multi-faceted science of animal behavior. Driven by boundless curiosity, they pursue lines of inquiry that are not limited to any particular size (from animal genes to entire communities) or species (from ants to elephants) or even places on Earth (from water to land to air). The MPI-AB is committed to the free dissemination of research, and so we actively work with the press to promote the public understanding of science. If you’re a journalist interested in covering the MPI-AB, please contact us for more background on stories, to arrange interviews with MPI-AB scientists, or for information on filming at our institute.

Below, you’ll find helpful links and information:

MPI-AB news and press releases

The MPI-AB News site features stories about our scientists and their research findings. Our press releases are distributed to journalists on a regular basis by the Max Planck Society. Please email us if you would like to sign up to receive weekly press releases from the Max Planck Society.

Republishing stories for web and print

All MPI-AB news stories republished on third-party sites must include:

  • At the top of the story: the headline, sub-headline, and a citation of "Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior" that links to the original story on the MPI-AB News site.
  • At the bottom of the story: the words "Reprinted with permission of Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior" and a link to the MPI-AB News homepage.

Filming guidelines

Film and documentary crews are welcome to film at our locations, providing the work is MPI-AB related and adheres to our guidelines. Please contact Carla Avolio in the Media and Communications office to register interest to film at the institute.

Before filming begins, MPI-AB requires that our permission and media release forms are signed by the visiting network or production company. On the day of filming, a member of the Communications group will typically accompany crews to their interview and escort them throughout the visit. This helps to minimize disruption for other groups working at MPI-AB locations.

Seeking an Expert

Many of MPI-AB’s scientists are available to provide expertise on their research or similar topics. Search our researchers and their topics at the Research Overview page, or contact Carla Avolio in the Media and Communications office for help finding an expert.

Popular topics covered by our experts include

  • Collective behavior and swarm intelligence
  • Animal cognition including in birds; great apes; fish
  • Migration, including in birds and bats
  • Global animal tracking and the ICARUS project, including conservation, biodiversity, disaster forecasting
  • Birds in the local region, including conservation, general facts, storks
  • Seasonal brain shrinkage in shrews
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