Biosphere reserves UNESCO represent the worldwide system of protected areas with three basic functions – nature conservation, research and sustainable development. Each biosphere reserve is divided into three zones according to their prevailing function. Zoning should correspond to the areas rarity and originality of natural values. The topic of the study was identification of past land use and its changes within the declared Slovak biosphere reserves zones as indicators of their ecosystems originality. The land use development was identified from historical maps and aerial photographs. The most stable areas (with unchanged land use forms) as well as the intensity of land use change were identified within the BR zones. For a comparison of the 4 Slovak biosphere reserves study areas the coefficient of ecological stability was applied. The results in general justify the Slovak BR zoning and pointed out certain similarities of the studied areas.