Evolution on Islands

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The study of patterns and processes of evolution on islands has played an important role in the development of an understanding of how and why evolution occurs. Small, discrete pieces of the environment, frequently isolated from the continental processes of gene flow, often inhabited by unique species, and displaying remarkable rapidity of diversifying evolution, it is easy to see why islands have been referred to as `natural experiments.' This book surveys our current knowledge and understanding of island evolution in several chapters written by experts on various aspects of microevolution, speciation, and adaptive radiation.