Since 1984 I have been working on phytophagous insects; since 1990 my special interest has been the biology of leafhoppers and planthoppers (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha), associated with Prof. Dr. Matthias Schaefer's team. My research focuses on:

Taxonomy

• Taxonomy of selected groups (Tettigometra, Macropsis, Idiocerinae, Eupteryx, Zygina, Macrosteles, Metalimnus, Cicadula, Psammotettix)
• Identification key to the central European Auchenorrhyncha fauna (in cooperation with Werner and Ingrid Holzinger, Graz)

• Host relationships, resource utilization and habitat requirements
• Composition of Auchenorrhyncha guilds on plants, particularly grasses, sedges and trees
• Auchenorrhyncha communities in grassland and forest ecosystems
• Functional role of Auchenorrhyncha in ecosystems
• Interactions of Auchenorrhyncha with spiders and ants
• Macroecology of central European Auchenorrhyncha
• Responses of grassland communities to management and disturbance

• Geographical and altitudinal distribution limits and their dynamics
• Large-scale patterns of diversity in Europe and the Palearctic
• Species-area relationships

• Leafhoppers as pests on cultivated herbs and spices
• Leafhoppers as pests on cultivated vegetables
• Leafhoppers and planthoppers as vectors of plant diseases

• Compilation of Red Lists
• Control of management success
• Monitoring