**4. Conclusion**

Natural forest fragmentation is not a new phenomenon in the Tatras. Windthrows have repeatedly happened in this region in the past (Zielonka et al*.,* 2009) although in a much smaller scale. Urbanization connected with the human-induced deforestation also played an important role in the past because of tourism. The main difference between the old practices and the current deforestation is the difference in scale and rate of increase. In the past, small patches of pastures or damaged forest appeared in the large forested landscape and they quickly grew back upon abandonment. What happened during the bora windstorm in 2004 in the Tatra National Park was precisely the opposite: remnant forest patches were left in the "sea" of the degraded forest landscape.

Anthropogenic disruption of the natural development of the Tatra forest in the past caused that the status of the forest before the calamity did not correspond to the natural development at all. Wood species composition and structure on the greater part of the affected area were not proper for the place. The majority of growths were mature and resembled an economic forest prepared for harvesting. The growths consisted of slender and tall trees with high-situated crowns, which are unstable and highly susceptible to the wind and snow threats. Reasonable and consistent management should insist on growths of different species and age on small areas, which will ensure ecological stability and functionality of forest in an acceptable time horizon and simultaneously provide optimal biotopes for all naturally occurring species. Revitalization of forest affected by the windstorm is a very complicated process in terms of expertise, organization and economy. The aim of the present monitoring is to observe the process, to identify and assess the results in individual stages. Successful revitalization calls for a new forest-economic concept that is mosaic growths aided by natural processes and natural succession.

Habitat fragmentation not only reduces the area of available habitat but also can also isolate populations and increase edge effects. Whatever the combination of biotic and abiotic changes, the forest patches generally can no longer sustain the production of biodiversity it once had as a part of a larger forest. Understanding of the possible consequences of forest fragmentation remains of great concern to conservationists, biologists and landscape ecologists. The use of forest fragmentation indices in the analysis of forest landscapes offers a great potential for integration of spatial pattern information in the landscape-ecological management processes, but also requires understanding of limitations and correct interpretation of results.
