Dr. Oscar Franken
Interests
Research interests
Functions
Functions
Publications
Key-publications
Please find my list of publications at the bottom of this webpage or on Google Scholar
You can download all my publications on ResearchGate
Education
Professional education
Awards
Awards and Prizes
Other
Other
Linked news
Wednesday 02 July 2025
Sturdy nursery for shellfish turned out to be a predator buffet
The formation of mussel and oyster beds on sandy seabeds can be stimulated by using a hard substrate. However, when NIOZ PhD candidate Sterre Witte placed shells and pebbles with a simple or smooth structure, the baby shellfish proved to be easy prey…
Friday 07 March 2025
SUBES research programme investigates the species composition of the subtidal Wadden Sea
NIOZ will conduct research on behalf of Rijkswaterstaat into the soil inhabiting animals and soil composition in the deeper parts of the Dutch Wadden Sea: the areas that are permanently under water. The research consists of collecting and processing…
Tuesday 03 December 2024
Research shows shortcomings in protection of underwater nature Wadden Sea
New results from the Wadden Mosaic research programme show that only 10 per cent of the underwater nature in the Wadden Sea is effectively protected. Moreover, protective measures, such as the designation of protected areas, still often appear to…
Thursday 24 August 2023
Pear trees teeming with fish and other sea life
Artificial reefs in the Wadden Sea, made from discarded pear trees are teeming with marine life after more than a year underwater. That's shown in experiments by Jon Dickson, PhD candidate at NIOZ. "After four months, we already saw lots of fish and…
Thursday 03 August 2023
Veni grant for effects of heat waves on marine communities in shallow coastal seas.
(For Dutch, scroll down) NWO has awarded a Veni funding of EUR 280,000 to Oscar Franken of the University of Groningen and NIOZ. This will allow him to further develop his own research ideas over the next three years.
Wednesday 16 November 2022
Tree reefs become oases of life in the subtidal Wadden Sea
Researchers from the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), the University of Groningen, and Utrecht University have constructed artificial reefs made of pear-trees in the subtidal Dutch Wadden Sea in a novel experiment as part of the…
Tuesday 14 June 2022
Restoring marine nature by 'planting' pear tree reefs
In the past century, many reefs in the Wadden Sea and North Sea have disappeared. Reefs are very important for fish because they can hide there. We therefore need to restore reefs, but how do we do that? NIOZ is now starting a study into the…
Friday 10 September 2021
SIBES and Wadden Mosaic show powerline Wadden Sea planned straight through biodiversity hotspots
The projected powerline ‘Eemshaven West’, that may connect a new 700 MW wind park on the North Sea with the powerstation in Eemshaven, potentially crosses the Wadden Sea exactly in some of the most biodiverse hotspots. That is the conclusion drawn by…
Linked blogs
Monday 15 May 2023
Marine biodiversity in the Ems Dollart area
As part of the project Wadden Mosaic, the habitats and biodiversity of the subtidal Wadden are mapped for the first time - the part of the Dutch Wadden Sea that is permanently submerged. The Wadden Sea is a nature area of international and national…
Wednesday 21 July 2021
Fieldwork Schiermonnikoog - mapping oyster and mussel reefs
In my line of work it is not common to get asked to accompany a fieldwork expedition. This is surprising, as a lot of the people working at NIOZ can be found in the field (or more usually, on the water) at some point in time. For a…
