News
The breath of grasslands, or the role of different carbon sources in grassland CO2 emissions
The ecological role of Hungarian grasslands is very diverse: they are important in maintaining biodiversity, but they also play a significant role in agricultural production, water retention, and soil protection. However, they also have a function […]
Small fields have big benefits for pollinators – but only with semi-natural habitats nearby
Pollinators, such as bumblebees, are essential providers of ecosystem services for agriculture, yet their numbers are declining due to landscape structure simplification and habitat loss. To explore this issue, an international research group led by Riho […]
Zsófia Horváth was elected for president of the European Pond Conservation Network
Small standing waters, ponds or (temporary) pools, are among the most threatened ecosystems worldwide. They are disappearing at an alarming rate due to climate change, intensive agriculture, and other anthropogenic pressures, resulting in the extinction of […]
The Hungarian Academy of Sciences has announced its ‘Momentum MSCA’ postdoctoral fellowship for the first time
The Hungarian Academy of Sciences has announced its ‘Momentum MSCA’ postdoctoral fellowship for the first time, enabling outstanding researchers to join the work of Lendület research groups for a period of 1–3 years. The MTA-ÖK Lendület […]
Pollinators in the city: Europe-wide synthesis evidences the relevance of biodiversity-friendly urban management
Pollinators receive considerable interest due to their fundamental role in ecosystem functioning and human well-being. Unlike farmlands, studies of urban pollinator-promoting interventions have only started to grow rapidly recently and have not yet been synthesised, hampering […]
Increasingly Severe Droughts Will Claim Even Our Most Drought-Tolerant Native Grasses
According to researchers at the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research, many perennial grasses that had adapted to ‘normal’ drought conditions perished in the open sandy grasslands of the Kiskunság during the extreme droughts that have become […]
Researchers Join Forces to Create a Greener, More Sustainable Danube Region
The CLIMANATRES project aims to support the cross-border coordination of habitat restoration efforts along the Sava and Danube rivers through science-based decision-support tools. One of the project’s lead partners is the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research. […]
Unlocking the hidden biodiversity of Europe’s villages
Villages, often separated from larger towns and cities, consist of clusters of households and a few public buildings. Despite their long history, the biodiversity of European villages has been understudied compared to urban areas, forests, grasslands, […]
Sowing native species is effective against annual invasive plants, but permanent control of perennials remains a challenge in sandy grasslands
The Restoration Ecology Research Group of HUN-REN, CER-IEB conducted long-term monitoring of vegetation changes over a period of 17 to 25 years at three restoration experiments in the Kiskunság, Hungary. These sites underwent different restoration treatments, […]
Bacteria Used Oxygen Long Before Widespread Photosynthesis
Niels Bohr, the Nobel laureate in Physics and father of the atomic model, is famously supposed to have said, “It is difficult to make predictions, especially about the future.” Our uncertainty about whether he actually said […]
Research and practice for the ecologically sustainable forest management: the #oakadapt project is started
A new research project started in the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological research titled „Increasing the ecological sustainability of oak forests by close-to-nature forestry based on experimental research (#oakadapt)”. The project is founded by the Interreg Slovakia-Hungary […]
New study reveals how reduced rainfall threatens plant diversity
Predicting and mitigating the effects of climate change while preserving biodiversity is a top priority for both scientists and policymakers. As climate change intensifies, leading to more frequent and severe droughts, understanding the impact on natural […]
Garden ponds: Hidden gems of urban biodiversity conservation
Urbanisation is rapidly transforming landscapes worldwide, becoming a key driver of global biodiversity loss. It often impacts biodiversity negatively by creating selective environments that limit species diversity in urban compared to natural habitats. Amidst this challenge, […]
National Research Excellence Programme projects launching in 2025 – Flowers and pollinators for the buzzing cities
Viktor Szigeti, a research fellow at the Institute of Ecology and Botany of HUN-REN CER, has been awarded a grant from the STARTING sub-programme of the National Research Excellence Programme, for the research project “Flowers and […]
Nutrient enrichment: an emerging threat to tropical forests
Tropical forests, often referred to as the “lungs of the Earth,” are essential for sustaining life on our planet. They provide clean air, water, and unparalleled biodiversity. While deforestation due to slash-and-burn agriculture, mining, and logging […]
Small habitats, big consequences: Connectivity loss in pond networks threatens microbial biodiversity
Researchers at the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research in Hungary applied an outdoor experimental setup of artificial ponds (mesocosms) to simulate habitat fragmentation and found that it significantly reduces microbial biodiversity, particularly among unicellular microeukaryotes. The […]
Invasive populations of tiger mosquitoes continuously expand the diversity of hosts in their blood-meal
The invasive mosquito species, the tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus), poses significant threats to human and animal health due to its ability to spread over large geographic areas and act as a vector for numerous pathogens. Understanding […]
The role of ecological monitoring in understanding Hungary’s key environmental problems and developing evidence-based solutions
The HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research organised a workshop on ‘The role of ecological monitoring in understanding Hungary’s key environmental problems and developing evidence-based solutions’ on 2 September 2024. The meeting was attended by 75 participants, […]
