REINTRODUCTION - CHALLENGES AND LESSONS FOR BASIC ECOLOGY

Ecology is a subject where theoretical predictions are often difficult to test experimentally in the field. To address this challenge, the E cological Society of America suggested exploiting large-scale environm ental management decisions in a scientific way. This 'adaptive managem ent' constitutes one of the purposes of the Sustainable Biosphere Init iative. Meanwhile, in the current context of the biodiversity crisis, translocations and particularly reintroductions of threatened species are becoming more numerous. It is time for ecologists and wildlife man agers to collaborate on these unique opportunities for large-scale stu dies.