Plant Science and Biodiversity Centre SAS
Topic
Pollinator footprints on flowers of economically important crops - environmental DNA and biodiversity monitoring
PhD. program
Biology
Year of admission
2025
Name of the supervisor
RNDr. Fedor Čiampor, PhD.
Contact:
Receiving school
Prírodovedecká fakulta UK
Annotation
The use of DNA methods in species identification and biomonitoring is on the rise, yet more precise data on their reliability, possibilities, and limitations are still lacking. There is a growing need for rapid and efficient tools for monitoring biodiversity, and DNA methods (DNA barcoding, metabarcoding) may serve as a suitable solution for effective monitoring. While the functionality of these methodologies has been confirmed multiple times, there is still a requirement for data that would test their application and contribute to the development of these methods. Pollinators constitute a vital group of organisms for us, but they are under substantial pressure due to anthropogenic interventions in the environment. The interest in pollinators has been increasing lately; however, our knowledge about their species composition, local community characteristics, and the influences of environmental factors remains relatively limited. More precise information about the interactions between pollinators and plants is crucial, as it can support effective measures for the protection and preservation of the pollinators' function, upon which we are significantly dependent.