Haris Attila: Hymenoptera Research in the Carpathian Basin - Natura Somogyiensis 29. (Kaposvár, 2016)
Early History of the Aculeata research in Hungary from the 16th till the 19th century (1560–1800)
54 Natura Somogyiensis History of the Aculeata research from 1801 till 1920 in Hungary The first zoological textbook of the 19th century was the "Természeti história. A Linné systemája szerint. 1. tsomó. Az állatok országa" (nice archaic Hungarian, in modem English: Natural History according to Linné's system) is written by János Földi (21st December 1755 Nagyszalonta — 6th April 1801 Hajdúhadház). In this book (Földi 1801), he mentioned 13 species, namely Sphex sabulosa, S. figulus, Chrysis ignita, Vespa crabro, V. vulgaris, V. arvensis, V. cribaria, Apis centuncularis, A. mellifica, A. violacea, A. terrestris, A. muscorum and Mutilla europaea (according to his original spelling and classification). Földi described not only the appearance of these species but provided the description of their life history, hosts and economic importance as well. János Földi was a medical doctor, naturalist, philologist and poet. He studied at the Calvinist High School in Debrecen and graduated at the Faculty of Medicine of Budapest University of Sciences. After his graduation, he started his medical practice in Szatmárnémeti than moved to Hajdúhadháza. In these years, he completed this book which was published in Pozsony (now Bratislava) half year after his death. He died in tuberculosis at the age of 45. There was hardly any Hungarian Aculeata record in the first five decades of the 19th century. Although this period of Hungary was characterized by intensive cultural and scientific progress (Hungarian reform era, foundation of the Hungarian National Museum in 1802 and the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in 1825, establishement of the Natural History Society in 1841 etc.) this group was not studied at all. Johann Christoph Friedrich Klug (1775 Berlin - 1856 Berlin, curator of the Natural History Museum in Berlin). Between 1816 and 1818, described 9 new Hymenoptera species from Hungary which were purchased from Gustav Dahl salesman and entomologist from Vienna but all of them were Tenthredinidae. Klug, probably in this way, received aculeata specimens either, but he never described them, for instance, Chrysis albipennis Dahlbom, 1854 attributed to Klug by Dahlbom (probably he found it in the Klug collection). From the second half of the 19th century, the Hymenoptera research became intensive. Not only Hungarian but Austrian, German, French and even Russian specialists researched the sawfly fauna of Hungary. Nineteen years after the 1848 revolutions (in Wien and Budapest) the situation was consolidated. Austria and Hungary officially united and formed the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy in 1867. In this time, János Frivaldszky established the world famous entomological collection of the Hungarian National Museum and purchased the Koy collection from the 18th century. In 1883, Ernő Kaufman started the first entomological journal titled: Rovarászod Lapok {Entomological Journal) that did not exist even for a year. One year later, in 1884, Géza Horváth started the second periodical called Rovartani Lapok {Journal of Entomology) that is now the Folia entomologica hungarica. The most important journals on plant protection: Köztelek (journal of the Association of Hungarian Landowners, founded in 1891), Növényvédelem {Plant Protection, founded first in 1925 and reestablished in 1965) and Acta Phytopathologica et Entomologica Hungarica (founded in 1966). In 1880, the Országos Phyloxéra Kísérleti Állomás {National Phyloxera Research Station) was founded. It was the predecessor of the Plant Protection Institute of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. Furthermore, applied hymenoptera researches were also done in the Plant Protection Faculties of the Agricultural and Horticultural Universities (Budapest, Keszthely, Gödöllő and Debrecen) and also in the County Stations of the Hungarian Plant
