As a museum scientist, I follow a taxon-based approach in my research. My special field is arachnology (mainly spiders, in addition scorpions and harvestmen), but I did also some work on the diversity of Darwin wasps (Ichneumonidae), cave crickets (Troglophilus cavicola), and recently on fairy shrimps (Anostraca). I am mostly fascinated by the diversity, functional morphology, taxonomy and systematics of these groups, especially when it is possible to link morphology with behavior and/or phylogenetics. Another topic is the functioning of spider capture threads and how a spider protects itself from getting entangled in its own trap.
