Haris Attila: Hymenoptera Research in the Carpathian Basin - Natura Somogyiensis 29. (Kaposvár, 2016)
History of the Aculeata research in the Romanian part of the Carpathian Basin from 1920
Haris, A.: Hymenoptera Research in the Carpathian Basin 133 Karl Wilhelm Knechtel (10th October 1884, Bucharest - 8th March 1967, Bucharest). Knechtel was Romanian entomologist of german ethnicity, professor at the Faculty of Agronomy, Bucharest (1940), member of the Romanian Academy (1955). He is recognised as founder of the Romanian school of agricultural entomology. In 60 years of intense efforts, Knechtel organised the research of teoretical and applied entomology. His research focused on faunistic, systematic and zoogeographical studies on Thysanoptera, Orthoptera, Coccidae, Formicidae, Vespidae, Apidae and also on the biology and ecology of pests attacting cereals, fruit trees, ornamental plants, etc. His interest in the field of hymenoptera covers faunistic and systematic research on genera Bombus and Psithyrus of Romania publishing the first identification key for these genera in the academic series "Fauna R.S.R." (Knechtel 1955). He investigated the species of genera Bombus and Psithyrus of Bucegi Mountains (Knechtel 1939), Dobrogea region (Knechtel 1962) and published an extensive zoogeographical and ecological study on tribe Bombini living in Romania (Knechtel 1954). He also published data regarding bumble bees from Singeorz - Bai (Knechtel and Paraschivescu 1962), Pe(ea (Knechtel 1963) (Transylvania) and established valuable collection of wasps and bumble bees containing rare species at European level. Raymond Benoist (10th June 1881 Vendresse - 17th January 1970) Benoist graduated and doctorated in botany at Paris University. After his graduation, his first job was at the École Pratique des Hautes Études. In the following years, he worked in French Guyana to study tropical forests, leaded 2 scientific expeditions for the Paris Natural History Museum and also for the Institut Scientifique Cherifien de Rabat (Morocco), taught botany at the medical school in Quito in Ecuador. After his return back to France, he was appointed deputy director at Paris Natural History Museum, later he was nominated head of research at National Scientific Research Center and finally, he served as director of botanical services at the Madagascar Scientific Research Institute. In 1947, he was elected president of the French Botanical Society. Besides botany, he studied Hymenoptera as well. In 1929, Benoist described Osmia jason Benoist, 1929 from Comana Vlasca (Vlasca county) South-Eastern border of the Carpathian Basin (Benoist 1929). Alin Constantinescu (1945-46? -) Constantinescu was member of the technical staff (his duty was mounting insects) of the Natural History Museum "Grigori Antipa" Bucharest, who specialized for Apoidea, and studied Microlepidoptera either. He graduated the Faculty of Biology-Zoology in 1970 and left Romania in 1975 for the USA, Los Angeles. He worked approximately 4 years at Antipa Museum. He was bom in 1945 or 1946. When he arrived to the USA, he changed his name to Alyn Constau or Constand. His publication activity restricted to the 70’s. We find data for the Carpathian Basin in his monograph on the Nomioides Schenck bees of Romania (Constantinescu 1974). Ioana Matache (27th April 1943 Murfatlar Basarabi - ) Colletidae and Megachilidae specialist of Natural History Museum "Grigori Antipa" Bucharest and also deputy director of the Museum. For now, she is retired. She was responsible for the reorganization and the modernization of the museum for the 100 years anniversary of it's foundation. Ioana graduated at Faculty of Biology of Bucharest University and started her career as biology teacher at the Agricultural-Industrial High-School in Fundulea. After 10 years teaching, in 1976, she joined to “Grigore Antipa” National Museum of Natural History. After 23 years work for the museum, she was appointed deputy general director of the institute. During her management of the Hymenoptera collection, she greatly increased
