- Academic title:
- dr. habil.
- Position:
- Professor MRI PAS
- Scientific groups:
- Bat Ecology Group (Leader)
- Habilitation - University of Białystok
- PhD - Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw
- MSc - Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń
The main scientific interests of Ireneusz Ruczyński concern broadly understood bat ecology, including behavioral ecology, sensory ecology, and bat sociality. He is also involved in bat conservation activities.
He has conducted research, among others, on the use and selection of roosts by bats in the Białowieża Forest, the role of senses in locating them, and the influence of temperature on learning and memory processes. An important part of his research focuses on the sociality of male parti-coloured bats Vespertilio murinus. This species forms male colonies during certain periods, which is linked to energetic constraints and compensatory behaviors.
Currently, the research focuses on the importance of water bodies in agricultural landscapes for bats' spatial activity and their role in the ecosystem services chain. It also examines the impact of environmental changes caused by bark beetle outbreaks on bat activity
- 2019–2023 CA18107 – Climate change and bats: from science to conservation (CLIMBATS), Management Committee member
- 2014–2019 – Germany, Max Planck Institute (Radolfzell), series of short-term research visits within collaboration, funded by the National Science Centre
- 2012 – Germany, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Seewiesen, short-term visit
- 2011 – Germany, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Seewiesen (MPI scholarship)
- 2009–2011 – Germany, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Seewiesen, (scholarship Mobility Plus)
- 2008 – Scotland, University of Aberdeen, research stay funded by Marie Curie BIORESC program
- 2000 – Panama, one-month research stay at Barro Colorado Island, funded by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
International Conferences: XVIth European Bat Research Symposium, Tarragona, Catalonia-Spain (2024); 18th International Bat Research Conference, Phuket, Thajland (2019); 5th International Berlin Bat Meeting – Berlin, Germany (2017); 14th European Bat Research Symposium Donostia (2017); VIth European Conference on Behavioural Biology, Essen, Germany (2012); 15th International Bat Research Conference, Praque, Czech Republic (2010); 13th International Behavioral Ecology Congress, Perth, Australia (2010); XIIIth International Research Conference, Mikołajki, Poland; IXth European Bat Research Symposium, Le Havre, France (2002); VIIIth European Bat Research Symposium, Kraków, Poland (1999).
- 2024–2027 The landscape of pulsating aquatic insect swarms and their predators; funding: National Science Centre (OPUS); Principal Investigator
- 2021–2026 Ecological effects of forest disturbances – a natural experiment in the Białowieża Forest; funding: National Science Centre (OPUS); Researcher
- 2021–2024 Active conservation of the western barbastelle in selected forest areas in Poland; funding: Norwegian Funds (EOG 2014–2021); Researcher
- 2010–2013 Influence of tree cavity resources on animal communities using them in stands of varying naturalness; funding: National Science Centre (OPUS); Researcher
- 2014–2019 The best of bad compromises – evolutionary determinants of male bat sociality; funding: National Science Centre (SONATA BIS); Principal Investigator
- 2009–2011 Cognitive processes in warm and cold conditions: effect of lowered body temperature on learning rate; funding: Ministry of Science and Higher Education (Mobility Plus); Fellow
- 2006–2010 BIOSEB – Summer School in Ecology and Biodiversity; funding: EU 6th Framework Programme; Researcher
- 2005–2008 Role of senses in locating and selecting roosts by forest bats; funding: State Committee for Scientific Research; Principal Investigator
- 2002–2003 Factors shaping roost selection and use by bats in the Białowieża Forest; funding: State Committee for Scientific Research; Researcher
- 2002–2005 BIOTER – Centre of Excellence in Biodiversity Conservation and Mammal Research in European Terrestrial Ecosystems; EU-funded; Researcher
- 2001–2005 Interspecific competition in shrew communities of the Białowieża Forest – experimental verification; funding: State Committee for Scientific Research; Researcher
- 2000–2001 Density of hollow trees as a factor shaping spatial distribution of bat roosts; funding: State Committee for Scientific Research; Principal Investigator
- Member of the Committee of Evolutionary Biology of the Polish Academy of Sciences (since 2025)
- Coordinator of the BioPlanet Doctoral School at IBS PAS (2019–2022)
- Member of the Scientific Council of IBS PAS (2005-2009, since 2015)
- Member of the Local Ethics Committee in Białystok (2005–2009)
- Board Member of the Polish Society for Bat Protection (since 2026)