Published online by Cambridge University Press: 13 April 2010
We analyze the main populations of 6 local Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxies by comparing the observed stellar metallicity distributions with the predictions of chemical evolution models. The predicted metallicity distributions of stars generally exhibit a low range of metallicities, a peak below the one of the MW disc in the solar neighborhood (but similar to the Halo), and a sharp decrease at higher metallicities in agreement with observations. The position of the peak is related to the low star formation rates adopted whereas the sharp decrease is a consequence of the occurrence of strong galactic winds. In the low metallicity tail of the distributions we predict a low number of stars in agreement with observations.