Ilkka’s works is well known and cited globally. However, he was also an active supporter of the scientific community in Finland, which is evident by the twenty articles he authored in Annales Zoologici Fennici during his career. His first publication in the journal (Koskela & Hanski 1977) was the start of his long series of papers on dung beetles; while the last one, with (Mitikka & Hanski 2010) was on the genetic basis of dispersal in metapopulations.
Throughout his career Ilkka Hanski worked in many fields of ecology. His contributions to each stand out, due to his insightful integrative research, his accessible communication of ideas, and because of the value he placed on mentorship and collaboration. This combination of strengths resulted in his having real impact on the direction and vitality of much ecological research, and on the work of many individual researchers. The volume starts with a preface written by Eeva Furman, who was Ilkka’s wife, which portrays the rich integration of Ilkka’s childhood interest in nature, his family life and his scientific career. After that the papers organized into five sections: Conservation policy and the value of bio- diversity, Community ecology, Metapopulation ecology, Population ecology and life history, and Genetics and evolution (contents).
Koskela, H. & Hanski, I. 1977: Structure and succession in a beetle community inhabiting cow dung. — Annales Zoologici Fennici 14: 204–223.
Mitikka, V. & Hanski, I. 2010: Pgi genotype influences flight metabolism at the expanding range margin of the European map butterfy. — Annales Zoologici Fennici: 47: 1–14.