Boros István (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 4. (Budapest 1952)
Kovács, L.: The Eupithecia communities and the problems of their evolution in our swamps and reeds (Lepid.)
conditions, but concern the general distribution of certain species : both places present examples. Exiguata reached our borders from the NE, and had not passed beyond certain points of the country (Bükk Mountains, Bátorliget). Silenicolata is an isolated species, and the Transdanubium falls into one of its territories of distribution. These are strict zoogeographical cases in the development of local faunas. It is not impossible, that one or the other of our insufficiently known species will be relegated to this category. The Eupithecia community of the AInetum of Ócsa does not seem to be identical, neither in its origin, nor in its development, with the above two. One of their dominant species, plumbeolata, could not be found even after years of collecting ; while the other, valerianata, plays a very subordinant role, even though this swampy area is in uncomparably better condition than the swamp fragments of Vörs. The alder forests of the Danube —Tisza Plains developed in former river beds, which, deduced from the data presented by our Eupithecia, must have happened later than the formation of the birch swamps. The absence of plumbeolata seems to show that when the population by lepidoptera of the woods was going on this species, and perhaps its food plant, too, was already missing in the neighbourhood. Cold microclimate and high humidity, though, are at its disposition, even now. Local conditions helped in the establishment of the other higrophilous Eupithecia species in Ócsa, though we meet mostly with generally distributed species. The special, of the above areas essentially different, dominancy relations show better than anything else the singularity of local conditions. Obviously, the extensive shade of the forests and the abundant numbers of the food plant, hop, make possible the unusually great numbers of assimilata, an otherwise generally spread species. There is yet another species here for which local conditions are particularly agreeable, our higrophilous absinthiata. The Eupithecia community of the Diássziget is still under development. The course of evolution, at the time being, consists in the gradual invasion by the surrounding species. Of the species intruded, those will remain which find their life conditions assured, while those will propitiously breed for which the environmental conditions are favourable. Regarding the isolated state of this area which allows penetration step by step only in the case of animals of such weak flying powers ás Eupithecia, the increase of the community can be expected of the species of the wider neighbourhood, but the speciality revealed in the dominancy numbers backs the view that this area is able to support a community different from those of its environment. The reeds show everywhere the buds of development of the Eupithecia communities of wet areas. In the course of succession reeds follow the plant associations of the water, and they are an unsuitable habitat for Eupithecia species. The reeds of the Kisbalaton, in its present place, is a very recent one ; it invaded the gradually silted-up bottom of the lake. The dehydration of the soil of the reeds at Dinnyés (Lake-Velence) could also not have happened long ago. The examples of other reeds, however, like the one in Felsó'peszér of an obviously older origin, corroborates our view. The real establishment of Eupithecia species begin only in places where swampy meadows and willowy areas develop. It must be emphasized that everything said above refers only to conditions in Hungary. If, however, one studies faunistical literature with any attention at all, "he will be of the opinion that the course of evolution was the same, or very similar, in other parts of Middle Europe, too ; and that the manifold concurrences experienced in the basic components of Middle European swamps are founded on this same fact.
