Due to the attractiveness of butterflies, and their usefulness as model systems for biological questions, there has been a considerable amount of material written on butterfly biology, largely in Europe. This book synthesizes all relevant and recent knowledge in the field, which is a must for those making use of this taxonomic group as a model system. It is divided into five major parts which deal with habitat use, population ecology and genetics, evolutionary ecology, distribution and phylogeny, and global change and conservation. There are growing numbers of scientific projects and networks...

The effects of isolation, area size, and habitat quality on the survival of animal and plant populations in the cultural landscape are central aspects of a research project started in Germany in 1993 (, Forschungsverbund, Isolation, FHichengroBe und BiotopquaIiHit', abbreviated to 'FIFB'). After a long period of preparation, scientists from seven univer sities and one research institution started to work within the frame of this project. Fund ing for four years was provided by the former German Federal Ministry of Research and Technology (BMFT), now the Ministry of Education and Research...

Die Arbeiten zu vorliegender Studie wurden von vielen Fachkollegen und Freunden auf ver schiedenste Art und Weise untersttitzt. Fiir die zahlreichen Diskussionen und technischen Hilfestellungen, die wesentlich zur Entwicklung des Modelles beitrugen, mochte ich mich ganz besonders bedanken bei PD Dr. Achim Poethke (Mainz), Silke Bauer (lena), Dr. Uta Berger (Bremen), Dr. Karin Frank (Leipzig), Prof. Dr. Alfred Seitz (Mainz), Christian Stelter (Leipzig) und Armin Ratz (Leipzig). Ebenso trugen viele Gesprache dazu bei, die Grundideen der Metapopulation sowohl zu verinnerlichen als auch mit...