De Groot has been working as an ecologist at Wageningen Environmental Research (WENR) since 2012. He researches the services that insects such as pollinators and natural pest controls provide for humans and the preservation and improvement thereof. De Groot is also involved with the WENR laboratory for ecological genetics.
Half of all wild bee species are under threat of extinction in the Netherlands. 188 of the 358 species found here are currently on the red list (Dutch) of threatened species. A large number of hoverflies are also disappearing at an alarming rate. Why is this happening? Why is it a…