Evolution of Island Mammals

Book excerpt: 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 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 record This accessible and richly illustrated textbook is written for graduate level students and professional researchers in evolutionary biology, palaeontology, biogeography, zoology, and ecology.