Submitted by editor on 26 August 2025.

We are happy to welcome Dr. Zsófia Horváth, from Budapest, Hungary, to the Oikos Editorial Board. To know more about her, read our interview below!

Website: https://metacomlab.com/

What's your main research focus at the moment?

I am a community ecologist interested in the spatial structuring and landscape-level drivers of biodiversity. Much of my work focuses on small aquatic habitats, ponds, where I study how connectivity sustains aquatic biodiversity. More recently, I have become fascinated by how networks of secondary habitats operate in urban environments. At the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research in Hungary, I lead a lab that combines empirical and experimental approaches to metacommunity ecology and we run a citizen science program on garden ponds called MyPond.  

Can you describe your research career? Where, what, when?

I began my research career studying temporary saline ponds in Central Europe during my PhD in Hungary, which fuelled my interest in biodiversity patterns across landscapes. As a postdoc, I worked at WasserCluster Lunz in Austria and KU Leuven in Belgium, where I gained experience with metacommunities, lab, mesocosm, and field experiments, and landscape genetics. I also spent shorter periods at iDiv in Germany, exploring spatio-temporal dynamics of biodiversity in habitat networks. I returned to Hungary in 2019, where I started my own group at the Centre for Ecological Research.

How come that you became a scientist in ecology?

I have always been fascinated by animals and ecosystems (especially the aquatic ones), inspired early on by books from Gerald Durrell and David Attenborough, and later by supportive teachers and family members. Field experiences as a regular volunteer in a national park during my student years confirmed that ecology was definitely my path, and I have been excited ever since to explore how ecological communities work and what drives their changes. I also enjoyed talking about nature, animals, and science with visitors, something that still inspires the outreach we do as part of my lab's research.

What do you do when you're not working?

I enjoy reading, listening to music (which I do almost constantly), and discovering new landscapes. I love immersing myself in my surroundings, whether in a forest, at the seaside, or in a new city, exploring and even getting a bit lost in the best sense. When I have the chance to travel to the sea, one of my favourite activities is spending time observing marine life while floating above a busy rock or reef. I also enjoy exploring different cultures and languages.

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