The research on invertebrate diversity, as well as the monitoring of the changes in their taxonomic classification, are of significant importance considering that these animals represent the most numerous and diverse group of living organisms on planet Earth and play a key role in the functioning of ecosystems. Taxonomy enables the accurate identification, classification, and understanding of the phylogenetic relationships among different groups of invertebrates, which forms the basis for their scientific study and monitoring. Therefore, the research activity of the Department of Systematics and Phylogeny of Invertebrates (Prof. Dr. Stoe Smiljkov, Prof. Dr. Valentina Slavevska-Stamenković, and Assist. Prof. Dr. Jelena Hinić) is directed toward the detailed study of the faunistic diversity of invertebrates in the Republic of North Macedonia by integrating modern molecular-biological tools into classical taxonomic methods. In addition, a significant part of the Department’s scientific work is focused on hydrobiology, within which natural processes and conditions in the country’s freshwater ecosystems are actively studied using macroinvertebrates. Given that there is no effective system for assessing the ecological status of aquatic ecosystems in the Republic of North Macedonia, the scientific approach of the Department of Systematics and Phylogeny of Invertebrates has made a significant contribution to the process of implementing macroinvertebrates as a mandatory component in monitoring studies.
Over the past 20 years, the scope of the Department’s activities has been actively expanded through the opening of new fields and areas of research. Of particular importance are the vision and efforts of the academic staff of the Department to introduce forensic entomology not only as a course in undergraduate studies, but also as an opportunity to enter a new sphere of research that is of special significance for the Institute of Biology as well as for the overall development of science in the Republic of North Macedonia.
The Department of Systematics and Phylogeny of Invertebrates, together with the Department of Animal Ecology, established and maintains an impressive collection of various groups of aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates, registered as the Macedonian National Collection of Invertebrates (MNCI).