Evolution of Island Mammals

EVOLUTION OF ISLAND MAMMALS Evolution on islands differs in a number of important ways from evolution on mainland areas. Over millions of years of isolation, exceptional and sometimes bizarre mammals evolved on islands, such as pig-sized elephants and hippos, giant rats and gorilla-sized lemurs that would have been formidable to their mainland ancestors.Evolution of Island Mammals, Second Edition, provides an updated and expanded overview of the current knowledge on fossil island mammals worldwide, ranging from the Oligocene to the onset of the Holocene. The book addresses evolutionary processes and key aspects of insular mammal biology, exemplified by a variety of fossil species.Readers familiar with the first edition will find here a host of updated and enhanced material, including:An entirely new chapter on the island ruleUpdated and expanded theoretical chaptersUpdated and improved taxonomic informationExtensive coverage of new discoveriesBody masses or body size indices for most extinct island mammalsNew figures visualizing the richness of the fossil recordThis accessible and richly illustrated textbook is written for graduate level students and professional researchers in evolutionary biology, palaeontology, biogeography, zoology, and ecology.

EVOLUTION OF ISLAND MAMMALSEvolution on islands differs in a number of important ways from evolution on mainland areas. Over millions of years of isolation, exceptional and sometimes bizarre mammals evolved on islands, such as pig-sized elephants and hippos, giant rats and gorilla-sized lemurs that would have been formidable to their mainland ancestors.Evolution of Island Mammals, Second Edition, provides an updated and expanded overview of the current knowledge on fossil island mammals worldwide, ranging from the Oligocene to the onset of the Holocene. The book addresses evolutionary processes and key aspects of insular mammal biology, exemplified by a variety of fossil species.Readers familiar with the first edition will find here a host of updated and enhanced material, including:* An entirely new chapter on the island rule* Updated and expanded theoretical chapters* Updated and improved taxonomic information* Extensive coverage of new discoveries* Body masses or body size indices for most extinct island mammals* New figures visualizing the richness of the fossil recordThis accessible and richly illustrated textbook is written for graduate level students and professional researchers in evolutionary biology, palaeontology, biogeography, zoology, and ecology.

Part IChapter 1 IntroductionChapter 2 History of Island StudiesChapter 3 Factors that Influence Island FaunasPart IIChapter 4 CyprusChapter 5 CreteChapter 6 GarganoChapter 7 SicilyChapter 8 MaltaChapter 9 Sardinia and CorsicaChapter 10 The Balearic IslandsChapter 11 MadagascarChapter 12 JavaChapter 13 FloresChapter 14 SulawesiChapter 15 The PhilippinesChapter 16 JapanChapter 17 The Southern and Central Ryukyu IslandsChapter 18 The Californian Channel IslandsChapter 19 The Greater AntillesChapter 20 The Lesser AntillesPart IIIChapter 21 An Overview of Endemic SpeciesChapter 22 Speciation Processes in Island EnvironmentsChapter 23 The Island Rule: Dwarfism and GigantismChapter 24 Parallel Patterns and TrendsChapter 25 Extinction of Island MammalsReferencesIndex