PI
Gábor Herczeg
I am an evolutionary biologist interested in various model organisms and approaches that help us understanding phenotypic variation observed in nature from the within-individual to the between-species levels. My “favourite” phenotypic trait to study is behaviour, hence, I can also label myself as a behavioural ecologist. That being said, my studies typically revolve around behavioural, life-history and morphological variation. I love reptiles, the taxon I started my scientific career with, however, today I am involved with research on various taxa, from fungi to birds.
Core members
Dávid Herczeg
I am an evolutionary ecologist interested in how amphibians can cope with emerging environmental stressors. My current research topics strongly rely on experimental work with larval and metamorphosed amphibians solely or simultaneously exposed to stressors such as infectious pathogens (e.g., chytrid fungus and ranaviruses), microplastics or agrochemicals.
Gergely Horváth
Despite my training in behavioral ecology, I prefer to label myself as an evolutionary ecologist. Most of my research revolves around behavioral consistency (i.e., animal personality), particularly the evolutionary potential of behavioral variation between and within individuals. Recently, I’ve also become interested in how environmental stress affects these components. I study various model organisms, but my all-time favorites are reptiles and pill bugs.
Jana Růžičková
I am particularly interested in the ecology of ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae). I’ve been working on radio telemetry, habitat use and movement patterns of selected large species as well as community ecology of carabids in managed temperate forests, agricultural landscapes and post-mining areas in Central Europe. Currently, I’m mainly engaged in research on how the different management practices of two silvicultural systems, represented by rotation forestry (clear-cuts, preparation cuts, retention tree group) and continuous cover forestry (gap-cutting), can affect ground beetles at different levels of the organization, from assemblages and species populations to individuals and their behavior.
Miklós Laczi
My area of interest is investigation of bird colouration from different viewpoints including information content, sexual selection, anatomical background and climate change. I am also interested in exploring the multiple links between climate change and reproductive phenology and reproductive investment. My main study species are the collared flycatcher, great tit and blue tit. I’m also interested in studying collared flycatcher song too.
Sándor Csősz
I have been working on ants for over two decades. This animal group’s complex life cycle, social behavior, and unique appearance mesmerized laics and biologists from the antique ages. For biologists, the numerous lineages (more than 16,000 species and about 400 genera are known worldwide) and many evolutionary innovations deliver unrestricted opportunities for integrative research. My research addresses complex questions concerning evolution, systematics, biodiversity, phenotypic plasticity, and social parasitism across various ant taxa using state-of-the-art morphometric, molecular, and imaging techniques. I heavily emphasize generating large datasets to achieve robust results via quantitative analyses to answer specific questions: to what extent do morphological distances correlate with phylogenomic distances (i.e., with the reproductive isolation), and where does a species begin and another end?
PhD students
Anna Biró
My area of interest is the functional morphology of cave crustaceans and the effect of sex on cave related adaptations. My model taxa are the Asellus aquaticus species complex and the Niphargus genus.
Daniella Kiss
I graduated from the University of Debrecen with a master’s degree in biology and zoology. Presently I’m a doctoral student at the Doctoral School of Biology, Eötvös Loránd University. I’m mainly interested in herpetology, and in my PhD research I examine the relationship between stress and personality in Carpetan rock lizards (Iberolacerta cyreni). During the fieldwork in Spain, I investigate the effect of mild stressors on behavioural consistency and individual behavioural components (behavioral type, plasticity, predictability).
Kornél Takáts
My interests focus on the systematics of butterflies. The establishment of a most perfect classification should of course include the study of the intraspecific taxa described so far, or populations for which new names have not been introduced. I have started my investigations on the Carpatho-Pannonian populations of Parnassius apollo, which may be an ideal model organism for the problem of the most appropriate delimitation of subspecies, given that (i) it has a very wide distribution range (ii) it has the most described subspecific taxa among butterflies and (iii) the degree of spatial isolation of recent populations varies over a wide spectrum. I was able to come to the group with some experience in molecular biology, was therefore particularly interested in the genetic characterization of populations, both in genomic (WGS, targeted capture) and classical PCR-Sanger sequencing approaches after the morphological studies.
Márton Árvay
I am currently engaged in avian research and project management at MME Birdlife Hungary, focusing on bird of prey. I am also a Ph.D. student in Biology at Eötvös Loránd University. My research primarily delves into the behavioral patterns and habitat utilization of large birds of prey, by using state of the art GPS telemetry technology. Over the course of my professional journey, I was dealing with eastern imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca), short-toed eagle (Circaetus gallicus), and Montagu’s harrier (Circus pygargos). As a project manager I am involved in EU funded Life projects that are addressing threats as wildlife poisoning and poaching.
Omar Calva
I am a Mexican cave biologist doing my Ph.D. in Biology at Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) in Budapest, Hungary. Taxonomy, phylogeny, and biogeography of cave-dwelling fauna are my current research. I am studying the Niphargus (Amphipoda, Niphargidae) populations of the Aggtelek Karst to understand the dispersal and speciation of the Niphargus group of Hungary and their natural history. My areas of interest are Subterranean Environments, Cave Biology, and Ecology and Conservation. My passion for cave fauna led me to communicate their importance in all ecosystems, being awarded and able to participate in several expeditions, volunteer programs, workshops, a book chapter and even filmed a short independent documentary related to my master’s thesis.
Sára Sztruhala
My main research interests are animal personality research topics such as:
The effect of cave colonization on behavioral changes in Asellus aquaticus.
The effect of different environmental factors on the inter-and within –individual behavioral variation of the Common pillbug (Armadillidium vulgare).
Artificial selection on sociability and its effect on other behavioral traits in Guppy (Poecilia reticulata).
Supporting members
Attila Hettyey
Personal website:
evolecol.hu/people/attila-hettyey
Gábor M Kovács
Personal website:
gmkovacs.web.elte.hu/index.php?melyik=acsoport
Gergely Hegyi
Personal website:
behavecol.elte.hu/web/index.php/gergely-hegyi
János Török
Personal website: