There isprobably no more appropriate location to hold a course on mathematical ecology than Italy, the countryofVito Volterra, a founding father ofthe subject. The Trieste 1982Autumn Course on Mathematical Ecology consisted of four weeksofvery concentrated scholasticism and aestheticism. The first weeks were devoted to fundamentals and principles ofmathematicalecology.A nucleusofthe material from the lectures presented during this period constitutes this book. The final week and a half of the Course was apportioned to the Trieste Research Conference on Mathematical Ecology whose proceedings...