Alpine Biodiversity in Europe

1. Front Matter

   Pages I-XXXI

   PDF

2. Europe’s Alpine Areas

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1

      PDF

   2. An Outline of Europe’s Alpine Areas

      • G. Grabherr, L. Nagy, D. B. A. Thompson

      Pages 3-12

   3. A Bioclimatic Characterisation of Europe’s Alpine Areas

      • Ch. Körner, J. Paulsen, S. Pelaez-Riedl

      Pages 13-28

   4. The Regional Accounts

      • R. Virtanen, L. Nagy, J. Jeník, J. Štursa, P. Ozenda, J.-L. Borel et al.

      Pages 29-121

3. Plant and Vegetation Diversity

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 123-123

      PDF

   2. Overview: Patterns in Diversity

      • U. Molau

      Pages 125-132

   3. Taxonomic Diversity of Vascular Plants in the European Alpine Areas

      • H. Väre, R. Lampinen, C. Humphries, P. Williams

      Pages 133-148

   4. Patterns in the Plant Species Richness of European High Mountain Vegetation

      • R. Virtanen, T. Dirnböck, S. Dullinger, G. Grabherr, H. Pauli, M. Staudinger et al.

      Pages 149-172

   5. Altitude Ranges and Spatial Patterns of Alpine Plants in Northern Europe

      • J. I. Holten

      Pages 173-184

   6. Vascular Plant and Bryophyte Diversity along Elevation Gradients in the Alps

      • J.-P. Theurillat, A. Schlüssel, P. Geissler, A. Guisan, C. Velluti, L. Wiget

      Pages 185-193

   7. Assessing the Long-Term Dynamics of Endemic Plants at Summit Habitats

      • H. Pauli, M. Gottfried, T. Dirnböck, S. Dullinger, G. Grabherr

      Pages 195-207

   8. Mapping Alpine Vegetation

      • T. Dirnböck, S. Dullinger, M. Gottfried, C. Ginzler, G. Grabherr

      Pages 209-219

   9. A GIS Assessment of Alpine Biodiversity at a Range of Scales

      • U. Molau, J. Kling, K. Lindblad, R. Björk, J. Dänhardt, A. Liess

      Pages 221-229

4. Invertebrates

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 231-231

      PDF

   2. Overview: Invertebrate Diversity in Europe’s Alpine Regions

      • P. Brandmayr, R. Pizzolotto, S. Scalercio

      Pages 233-237

   3. The Geographical Distribution of High Mountain Macrolepidoptera in Europe

      • Z. Varga

      Pages 239-257

   4. High Altitude Invertebrate Diversity in the Ural Mountains

      • Y. E. Mikhailov, V. N. Olschwang

      Pages 259-279

   5. The Diversity of High Altitude Arachnids (Araneae, Opiliones, Pseudoscorpiones) in the Alps

      • K. Thaler

      Pages 281-296

   6. Patterns of Butterfly Diversity Above the Timberline in the Italian Alps and Apennines

      • L. Tontini, S. Castellano, S. Bonelli, E. Balletto

      Pages 297-306

The United Nations Conference on the Environment and Development (UNCED), held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, spawned a multitude of pro­ grammes aimed at assessing, managing and conserving the earth's biological diversity. One important issue addressed at the conference was the mountain environment. A specific feature of high mountains is the so-called alpine zone, i. e. the treeless regions at the uppermost reaches. Though covering only a very small proportion of the land surface, the alpine zone contains a rela­ tively large number of plants, animals, fungi and microbes which are specifi­ cally adapted to cold environments. This zone contributes fundamentally to the planet's biodiversity and provides many resources for mountain dwelling as well as lowland people. However, rapid and largely man-made changes are affecting mountain ecosystems, such as soil erosion, losses of habitat and genetic diversity, and climate change, all of which have to be addressed. As stated in the European Community Biodiversity Strategy, "the global scale of biodiversity reduction or losses and the interdependence of different species and ecosystems across national borders demands concerted international action". Managing biodiversity in a rational and sustainable way needs basic knowledge on its qualitative and quantitative aspects at local, regional and global scales. This is particularly true for mountains, which are distributed throughout the world and are indeed hot spots of biodiversity in absolute terms as well as relative to the surrounding lowlands.

• Artenschutz
• Biodiversität
• Bryophyte
• Flora
• Hochgebirge
• Species richness
• alps
• biodiversity
• conservation biology
• ecology
• ecosystem
• ecotone
• high mountains
• vegetation
• Ökologie

" ... this high-quality book is far more than just a first step, and should be in the library of every organization concerned in any way with alpine biodiverslity in Europe". (Mountain Research and Development - International Mountain Society)

• McConnell Associates, Edinburgh, Scotland

  Laszlo Nagy

• Department of Vegetation Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute for Ecology and Nature Conservation University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

  Georg Grabherr

• Institute of Botany, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

  Christian Körner

• Advisory Services, Scottish Natural Heritage, Edinburgh, Scotland

  Desmond B. A. Thompson

Policies and ethics