Research groups

Research topics of the group focus on evolutionary ecological dynamics in the Anthropocene and investigate how animal populations respond to human-induced recent environmental challenges, such as climate change, urbanization and biological invasion. One research line revolves around the role of behavioural traits in mediating interactions among individuals and species and around how these traits enhance adaptations to changing environments. Another key project deals with the evolutionary ecology of host-parasite-vector associations, which also derives important consequences for developing effective defence programs against emerging infectious diseases and invasions. These researches apply various field and lab approaches on various taxa such as mosquitoes, birds, bats, shrimps and dogs, and effectively integrates inputs from citizen science as well.

Ongoing research topics of the group:

(1) The identification of ecological factors driving the spread of invasive mosquito species and their role in the transmission of pathogens (e.g., West Nile Virus, malaria, Dirofilaria), while building an efficient system to monitor and make predictions about invasive mosquitoes and mosquito-borne diseases (https://szunyogmonitor.hu/szunyogmonitor-english/).

(2) The investigation of communication and cultural evolution in birds under different ecological conditions to unravel the effect of the social environment, habitat structure, urbanization and climate change.

(3) The study of the ecological effects of solar parks, including the sensory trap function of smooth surfaces on bats.

(4) The application of animal behaviour methods to assess and predict how competitive interactions among individuals shape the impact of non-native species, with a focus on gammarid crustaceans.

(5) The phylogenetic study of dogs to uncover how domestication can generate extensive among-breed variances in social, behavioural and cognitive traits.

(6) The development of citizen science platforms for monitoring of invasive species, and the enhancement of public awareness in relation to biodiversity issues.