Much of the Earth’s living creatures are insect. Within the insects one of the largest order is the Hymenoptera (here do belong the yellow jackets, bees, ants and wasps). The most abundant and least known groups of Hymenoptera belongs to parasitoids (ichneumonids, braconids, proctotrupids, chalcidoids etc.). One of the most colourful and varied groups are the generally small and seemingly hidden lifestyle chalcidoids, showing metalized colour patterns and with a size range from 0.15 mm to 4 cm. Chalcidoids, considering their role in trophic networks, are parasitoids (delayed effect predators) which have a significant role in the regulation of their systems. One of my target study groups are the chalcidoids. My study focuses mainly on the land use impact on those communities that are formed mainly by chalcidoids.

Another significant group of hymenoptera are the bees. Most bees that come to mind in the first round are the honeybees. However, a large number of bee species are solitary and do not protect aggressively their colonies, but with diligent and almost invaluable benefits, they even pollinate our cultivated plants. In recent decades, the diversity of bees has proven to have declined. My other study aim is to determine those solitary bee diversity affecting environmental variables, which can be both of land use, genetic and epidemiologic origin.

To study the above mentioned questions and goals I use landscape ecology, molecular and modelling tools