Overall Conclusion

This chapter will provide a summary review of all chapters and their respective research results. It will reiterate the focus of the work on the designation rules under the Habitats Directive regarding setting up Natura 2000 and sum up the main findings and the original contributions of the present work. Subsequently, this chapter will indicate further research needs such as the requirement of a wholesome review of the Habitats Directive as well as the Birds Directive to check whether these Nature Directives still fit today’s biodiversity conservation needs. Interrelational research regarding other legal and policy instruments on national, regional and international levels is still required, as well as more profound research in the topic area of lacking scientific knowledge.