Oecologia publishes innovative ecological research of international interest. We seek reviews, advances in methodology, and original contributions, emphasizing the following areas: Population ecology Plant-microbe-animal interactions Ecosystem ecology Community ecology Global change ecology Conservation ecology Behavioral ecology Physiological Ecology In general, studies that are purely descriptive, mathematical, documentary, and/or natural history will not be considered. The editors endorse the "Guiding principles in the care and use of animals" (approved by the Council of the American Physiological Society). All animal experiments reported in this journal must have been conducted in conformity with these principles. Editors are instructed to refuse papers in which evidence of the adherence of these principles is not apparent. Differences of opinion will be adjudicated by the Editorial Board. The acceptance of a paper implies that it has been scrutinized and recommended by at least two reviewers. Manuscripts submitted for publication must contain a statement to the effect that all human studies have been reviewed by the appropriate ethics committee and have therefore been performed in accordance with the ethi-cal standards laid down in an appropriate version of the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki. It should also be stated clearly in the text that all persons gave their informed consent prior to their inclusion in the study. Details that might disclose the identity of the subjects under study should be omitted. Please include at the end of the acknowledgements a declaration that the experiments comply with the current laws of the country in which the experiments were performed. The Editors in Chief reserve the right to reject manuscripts that do not comply with the above-mentioned requirements. The author will be held responsible for false statements or for failure to fulfil the above-mentioned requirements.