1.1. Landscape ecology - a developing discipline

The short history of landscape ecology as a established discipline within ecological sciences dates back to the early 1980’s. The origin of the landscape ecology, however, is much older having its roots in long European tradition of land use planning, and practical organisation and sound exploitation of natural resources (Naveh 1982, Golley 1994). The concept of landscape ecology was adapted by American ecologists and soon after the field began to develop towards more ecologically-orientated phrasing of questions and methodologies typical of modern ecological research. Contrary to the applied and descriptive approach in the European tradition, the American approach focused on fundamental and conceptual details in landscape pattern and function. Additionally, in America landscape ecological research was directed to natural landscapes whereas in Europe landscape ecology had routinely stressed questions regarding human dominated and strongly modified environments (Hersberger 1994).