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Rural areas in Poland have recently been witnessing an intensive process of transformation of economic structure inter alia manifesting in a change of the occupational structure characterising inhabitants. Development of non-agricultural ways of utilising the farms present in rural areas is tending confer a multifunctional character upon these, with populations growing even as the role of agriculture as a source of income for inhabitants is in decline. On the other hand, marginal areas with a still-dominant agricultural function continue to experience considerable loss of population. One of the effects of these observable process entails change in types of rural settlement. Considering Poland's local-authority areas (at the level of the so-called gmina), the authors here hypothesise that levels of socio-economic development correlate with trends as regards population change, in that gminas already enjoying a high(er) level of development undergo population increase, while the rural areas lagging behind in terms of development continue to depopulate. The aim of the work presented here has that been to consider a method by which to better determine gminas' levels of socio-economic development, as developed within the Monitoring of Rural Development in Poland framework. A further objective is to ensure enhancement of existing knowledge regarding changes in the spatial distribution of rural populations in line with both levels of socio-economic development in given areas and structural features characterising those levels. Comparisons with the statistical databases of Poland's Central Statistical Office (Statistics Poland) are then made, to allowing growing and depopulating villages to be distinguished from each other. Results confirm a steady evolution of the spatial differentiation characterising Poland's rural population, with the actual effect being for population in regions located far from larger cities to decrease, even as that in suburban areas goes on increasing. However, the work also confirms how developmental differences arising during the era of Poland's (18th-20th-century) Partitions between Russia, Prussia and Austria continue to influence the condition and development of particular parts of the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The work of Eugene Romer, founder of Polish geography, was framed by his involvement in the national cause. TheAtlas of Poland, a key tool in his political activism, was completed during the First World War under the uncertain circumstances prevailing on the Eastern Front. It focused more on the issue of unification than on boundaries. Skilled in physical geography, Romer made use of a cartographical technique rarely applied to ethnographical maps, that of isopleths. In this article, we address the reasons for this daring innovation and consider Romer’s training in the Austrian and German schools of cartography before examining the reception of the atlas by geographers from the different academic backgrounds. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article discusses two studies on population changes of birds inhabiting an area dominated by arable land, situated on the Silesian Lowland in south-western Poland. The two studies used the mapping method to establish the number of territories of birds. Compared with the 1977-1979 study, the 2001 study showed a rise of the species diversity and the emergence of 18 new bird species in the area. However, the 2001 study revealed a decrease in the number of the species nesting in or using open cultivated areas.