During end of July and early August 2001, I checked all personally known sites with Sanguisorba officinalis for the occurrence of Maculinea telejus. Apart from some sites in the close vicinity of Nyíregyháza and within the regular flood area of channels, all larger Sanguisorba sites were occupied with at least a small number of this very specialised butterfly species. In total, I observed a minimum number of 600 individuals within 18 sites. The true populations may be quite higher, because I only visited every site once, so it is easily possible, that I did not count the highest numbers of flying individuals. The two strongest populations are found between Marokpapi and Hetefejerce and around Fülesd erdeje. These are probably the only sites which hold a long-term self-sustaining population. Due to small population size or very restricted suitable habitat extension, most of the other sites probably underlay a strong metapopulation dynamic with frequent local extinction and recolonisation. Because also at larger sites, land-use practices are often disastrous for the species (mowing just after egg-laying in early august, observed e.g. near Oros), also small relict populations can have very high importance in the recolonisation process and should therefore be protected with care. High importance have also Sanguisorba populations along unmowed margins like channels.

Suitable management practices would be mowing in September (main conservation practice in western Europe, the grass is then used as litter for cattle or food for horses), if the site is not very productive mowing every two or three years is optimal. If the grass is needed every year, alternating mowing of one site distributed optimally over two or three years is recommended (important to have a similar distribution of Sanguisorba officinalis within the two or three parts). In this case, the population can also compensate mowing during unsuitable time.

A possible management variation could also be mowing once around end of May, as practised already for several years near the bridge of the Szipa channel toward Marokpapi. This area was occupied by many individuals, however it is not possible to know, if they really passed their whole life cycle in this area or just flew in from the surrounding unmown areas. In all other sites containing both parts with and without early mowing, the density in the mown places was at least 5-10 times lower than in the unmown area.

Definitely unsuitable is mowing between end of June and end of August. Then, not enough Sanguisorba is flowering during the flight period or the eggs or caterpillars are still on Sanguisorba and have no chance to survive. Within shortest time, a whole population can go extinct by this practice. Further, no kind of new drainage, reforestation or any other land-use changes should be allowed on this sites.