The Map of the Natural Vegetation of Europe was compiled and produced by an international team of vegetation scientists from 31 European countries over the period 1979-2003. The final results are now available in printed and digital form (in German and English on an interactive CD-ROM) and they include maps of the potential natural vegetation of Europe at the scales 1:2.5 and 1:10 million, a hierarchically structured overall legend, a comprehensive explanatory text and standardised digital data sheets with detailed information on c. 700 mapping units. The digital database and special software programmes facilitate a multitude of analyses and uses in the fields of research, teaching, education, information and planning. Selected examples give an overview of the present use and application of the data in Germany: 1. classification of ecological areas at different scales for various purposes; 2. demonstration of the total range and subdivision of formations (using beech forests as an example) as a basis for transnational synsystematic classification and nature protection; 3. production and use of detailed maps of regions and countries (e.g. Germany and adjacent areas); 4. as a baseline for estimating the natural potential net primary production. Udo Bohn and Gisela Gollub (corresponding author; e-mail: U.Bohn@arcor.de, Gisela.Gollub? BfN.de), Federai Agency for Nature Conservation, 53179 Bonn, Konstantinstra?e 110, Germany. INTRODUCTION The Map of the Natural Vegetation of Europe shows the distribution of the potential natural vegetation of the whole of Europe, including Iceland, Svalbard, Franz Josef Land, Novaya Zemlya, the Ural Mountains and the Caucasian states (Fig. 1). It is based on a unified concept that attempts to combine the classification systems of different schools and regions of Europe. The map shows the major zonal and azonal vegetation formations that are hierarchically subdivided into sub-formations, subgroups and, finally, c. 700 vegetation units at the lowest level. It is the most detailed map of its kind produced for an entire continent and was compiled and produced by a group of more than 100 vegetation scientists from 31 European countries over the period 1979-2003. The final results of this pan-European project are now available in printed and digital form (Bohn et al. 2000-2003; 2004). They include: a General Map of the Natural Vegetation of Europe at the scale of 1:10 million, showing the main zonal and azonal formations and their sub groups produced by reduction and generalisation of the basic vegetation map at the scale of 1:2.5 million; the basic Map of the Natural Vegetation of Europe at the scale of 1:2.5 million consisting of 9 map sheets and showing c. 700 mapping units; a hierarchically structured overall legend in German and English containing the mapping units classified into 14 zonal and 5 azonal main formations with different subgroups at various levels. The individual mapping units are labelled by codes consisting of capital letters?for the formations?and numbers, according to the order within the formations; a comprehensive Explanatory Text (English version on CD-ROM only) with information on the project history, the concept of the map, the physical background to Europe, the late and postglacial vegetation history of Europe and descriptions of the natural vegetation from formation level down to the mapping units; standardised digital data sheets on CD-ROM (in German and English) with detailed informa tion on the individual mapping units (e.g. Biology and Environment: Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy, Vol. 106B, No. 3, 199-213 (2006). ? Royal Irish Academy 199 This content downloaded from 157.55.39.157 on Tue, 17 May 2016 04:44:10 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms Biology and Environment Fig. 1 ? Reduced General Map of the Natural Vegetation of Europe (1:10 million) with main formations and sub formations (Bundesamt fur Naturschutz 2002). distribution, syntaxonomy of the natural plant communities, structure and species combination, site conditions, land use, loci typici and nature protection, most important references and representative photos of landscape and natural vegetation); an Interactive CD-ROM providing digital access to all the maps and texts in German and