Haris Attila: Hymenoptera Research in the Carpathian Basin - Natura Somogyiensis 29. (Kaposvár, 2016)
History of the Aculeata research int he Polish part of the Carpathian Basin from 1918
Haris, A.: Hymenoptera Research in the Carpathian Basin 105 Waldemar Zyla with Jaroslaw Bury (medical doctor in Markowa, entomologist, director and owner of his own medical centre), Damian Sudot (Gtogów Malopolski, medical doctor, graduated subrecently at Medical University of Lublin) and Przemyslaw Zieba (State Veterinary Laboratory in Lublin) provided data, on the distribution of Sceliphron destillatorium Iliig, and Sceliphron curvatum Sm. in South Poland and Europe completed with maps (Jaroslaw et al., 2009). With Krzysztof Werstak (Akadémia Swietokrzyska, Instytut Biologii, Kielce), they published occurence of 14 Vespidae species from Pieniny National Park (Werstak and Zyla, 2009). Waldemar Zyla after finishing Forestry Vocational School in Brynek, graduated at Uniwersytet Slqski Wydzial Biologii i Ochrony Srodowiska in 2000 and Uniwersytet Jagiellonski w Krakowie, Instytut Etnologii i Antropologii Kulturowej in 2007. Now, he is curator of Hymenoptera at Muzeum Gómoslaskie in Bytom. Józef Banaszak (19th March 1947 Lednogórze - ) Director of the Institute of Environmental Biology, University of Kazimierza Wielkiego in Bydgoszcz. Banaszak graduated, defended his doctoral thesis and finally habilitated at Uniwersytet Adama Mickiewicza in Poznan. After these years, Józef Banaszak spent a period at Instytut Ekologii Polska Akadémia Nauk Dziekanów and Wyzsza Szkola Pedagogiczna w Bydgoszczy as rector (1996-1999) before he joined to University of Kazimierza Wielkiego. His private collection of wild bees exceeds the 30 000 specimens. He is editor-in-chief of the Polish Journal of Entomology and honorary Member of the Polish Entomological Society. In Sphecos, 1982 6: 25-26, the following English autobiography we find from him: "I grew up in a rural environment in Wielkopolska region among fields, mild hills and pine forest. Through early and the continuous contact with nature I developed my love and fascination to it. My interest in insects began early in the high school receivedfrom reading wonderful book by Polish naturalists, J. J. Karpinski, "In the marvel land of Jean Henri Fabre". In this time I began to dream of becoming a biologist, and when I finished high school in 1965, my dream become reality. I entered the Faculty of Biology and Earth Sciences of the A. Mickiewicz University of Poznan. My first mentor in zoology was Professor J. Rafalski, a specialist in Arachnida. Thanks to his help and benevolence I can do my first student articles, concerning the bee fauna. Also my graduate thesis concerning bees: "The Apoidea of Middle Wielkopolska region" (West Poland) (1970). After graduation I decided to work in the Department of Investigation of the Useful Insect Diseases, Inst. Veterinary in Swarzedz near Poznan. During five years (1970-1975) I worked on parasites and pests of the honey bee which resulted in a D.S. Thesis "Studies on the fauna associated with inhabited bee hives (1975). In 1975 I start work in the Department of Agrobiology, Polish Academy of Sciences in Poznan where I am currently. Most of my papers and articles concern Apoidea. In the first stage of my investigation I was conducting a faunistic study on bees in my country. 1 think that estimation of state of the fauna is the duty of each generation of naturalists. In recent years my investigations concern, among others, ecology of bees in agroecosystems and natural habitats. Independently of mention investigations I collect all faunistic data concerning wasps and in particular the Chrysididae and Scolioidea." We may find data on Apoidea distribution, including South Poland (Carpathians, Tatra, Pienin Mts.) in various monographs on Halictidae, Andrenidae, Megachilidae co-authored by Józef Banaszak either (Pesbnko et al. 2000, Pesenko, Banaszak and Cierzniak 2002, Osytsnjuk et al. Banaszak, Romasenko and Cierzniak 2001). In "A checklist of the bee species of Poland" Banaszak discussed the Polish fauna in zoogeographical point of view including the Carpathicum (Banaszak 2000). He also published 2 papers on the Beskid Mts. (1969, 1975b) and further Aculeata species are recorded from South Poland in Banaszak 1975b and 2010.
