The 21 chapters of this book are based on the theme of a Special Conference of the Systematics Association and the Linnean Society of London, held at Trinity College Dublin (TCD), Ireland, in September 2008. During the three-day Climate Change and Systematics conference, there were stimulating presentations, posters and discussions covering a broad range of ecological and systematic research relating to climate change; these influenced the shape and content of this volume. Papers were contributed by a number of conference delegates and by others subsequently invited to broaden the book's scope or address particular theoretical issues.

Consideration of the book's theme began when Richard Bateman, the then President of the Systematics Association, invited John Parnell and the School of Natural Sciences, TCD, to host a conference on the topic and to base a Systematics Association volume around its conclusions. The ideas were refined in discussions with Alan Warren, the then Systematics Association Special Volumes series editor. We are grateful to both for their input and encouragement. Two anonymous book proposal reviewers provided valuable content guidance and many anonymous reviewers also helped to improve the chapter contributions. We are particularly grateful for the manuscript preparation input of Sandra Velthuis of Whitebarn Consulting, who has worked long and hard to proofread chapters and standardise their format, to Hugh Brazier, the excellent copy editor, and to the production team at Cambridge University Press, who have been highly supportive and professional.