Latest Projects

Research project (§ 26 & § 27)
Duration : 2024-01-01 - 2025-10-31

The aim of the project is to survey hoverflies, together with bees the most important pollinators worldwide, nationwide. This will be the standardised monitoring data for these important headline indicators for the first time in Austria. In addition, the flowering plants visited by the hoverflies are to be plants visited by hoverflies in order to gain knowledge about the pollen and nectar sources of hoverflies. Data on the occurrence and distribution of highly endangered hoverfly species in Europe will also be collected. Overall, the project fills a gap in Austria's biodiversity monitoring, also collects data on species that are highly endangered throughout Europe, and thus represents an important contribution to achieving the goals set out in the national biodiversity strategy. It establishes the headline indicator hoverfly in Austrian biodiversity monitoring.
Research project (§ 26 & § 27)
Duration : 2024-01-01 - 2025-10-31

Different studies document a severe decline of wild bees in the last decades. The aim of our project is to obtain information on the distribution and population development of wild bees in Austrian national parks by collecting data systematically. In terms of methodology, the project ties in with the ongoing project " Monitoring wild bees in Austria", which is surveying the diversity of wild bees in the cultivated landscape in over 200 test areas distributed throughout Austria. National parks are hereby linked to the Austrian monitoring programme with the indicator wild bees. In a first survey round (2024), the status quo of wild bees will be documented at selected sites in the Austrian national parks.
Research project (§ 26 & § 27)
Duration : 2022-10-01 - 2025-05-31

Austria is home to around 700 species of wild bees. This group of insects is one of the most efficient pollinators and is thus indispensable for the functionality of terrestrial ecosystems. Due to their differentiated habitat requirements, they are also ideally suited as indicator organisms for nature conservation. Various studies have shown a strong decline of wild bees in recent decades. Little is known about their status and development in Austria. However, knowledge about this is a central prerequisite for the effective protection of wild bees. Therefore, the objectives of the project are (1) the documentation of the status quo of wild bees on the basis of selected sites in the Austrian cultural and natural landscape (arable land, grassland, protected areas), (2) the connection of the wild bee indicator to the planned Austrian monitoring program based on BINATS and ÖBM and (3) the introduction of a bumble bee monitoring as a Citizen Science project. The planned project will be the basis for a well-founded assessment of the population situation of wild bee species in Austria.

Supervised Theses and Dissertations