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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Wissenschaft und neue Technologien
- Sprache: Englisch
Introduce students to the diversity embraced by the discipline of biogeography, revised and updated throughout
Biogeography: Space, Time and Life provides a comprehensive introduction to the study of large-scale geographic distributions of life, focusing on ecology, evolution, physical geography and conservation. Now in its second edition, this award-winning textbook illustrates key concepts in biogeography using engaging empirical examples of modern plant and animal distributions, long-term evolutionary history and current conservation challenges.
With an accessible style and clear structure, Biogeography defines fundamental terms from biology and physical geography, describes ecological biogeography and the biological features of the physical environment, explains key concepts in historical biogeography, explores the Earth’s diverse biogeographic subdivisions, current issues in conservation and more. Student-friendly chapters cover topics including biological interactions, speciation and extinction, changing continents and climates, human evolution, modern biodiversity, the relationship between humans and plants, animals and other organisms, and the role of biogeography in conservation.
- Introduces basic concepts in the study of animal and vegetation distributions, including various human and environmental impacts on these distributions
- Examines how biological factors such as heat and predation impact different species of plants and animals
- Features short biographical sketches of major figures in the field and examples of the natural histories of various species
- Considers the application of biogeographic theory and techniques for the benefit of conservation and sustainability
- Includes a companion website for students, as well as an instructor’s site with supplementary teaching resources
Designed for students across a wide range of disciplines, from the biological and physical sciences to the social sciences and humanities, Biogeography: Space, Time and Life, Second Edition is an excellent textbook for undergraduate courses in biogeography, Earth systems science, and environmental studies.
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Seitenzahl: 1685
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025
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Table of Contents
Cover
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
PREFACE TO THE 2
ND
EDITION
ABOUT THE COMPANION WEBSITE
CHAPTER 1: AN INTRODUCTION
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
PART I: SPACE AND LIFE
CHAPTER 2: SOME BASICS
BIOLOGY AND THE HIERARCHIES OF LIFE
PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY AND THE FUNCTIONING OF THE EARTH
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
CHAPTER 3: THE PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT AND THE DISTRIBUTION OF LIFE
LIGHT
TEMPERATURE
MOISTURE
OTHER PHYSICAL FACTORS
INTERACTING PHYSICAL CONTROLS ON GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTIONS
ENVIRONMENTAL GRADIENTS AND SPECIES NICHES
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
CHAPTER 4: BIOLOGICAL INTERACTIONS AND THE DISTRIBUTION OF LIFE
PREDATION
COMPETITION
SYMBIOSIS: MUTUALISM, COMMENSALISM, PARASITISM, AND MIMICRY
COMBINED PHYSICAL AND BIOLOGICAL CONTROLS ON DISTRIBUTION
INTERACTIONS, GRADIENTS, AND NICHES
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
CHAPTER 5: DISTURBANCE
FIRE
WIND
FLOODING
OTHER PHYSICAL DISTURBANCES
PATHOGENS
MARINE DISTURBANCES
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
CHAPTER 6: COMMUNITIES, FORMATIONS,AND BIOMES
COMMUNITIES
PLANT PHYSIOGNOMY, VEGETATION STRUCTURE, AND FORMATIONS
ECOLOGICAL EQUIVALENTS, LIFE ZONES, AND THE BIOMES
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
PART II: TIME AND LIFE
CHAPTER 7: CHANGING CONTINENTSAND CLIMATES
LIFE AND THE GEOLOGIC TIME SCALE
SHIFTING CONTINENTS
QUATERNARY CLIMATIC CHANGE
FUTURE CHANGES IN CONTINENTS AND CLIMATE
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
CHAPTER 8: DISPERSAL, COLONIZATION, AND INVASION
DISPERSAL
COLONIZATION, SEASONAL MIGRATIONS, AND IRRUPTIONS
DIFFUSION VERSUS JUMP DISPERSAL
BARRIERS, CORRIDORS, FILTERS, STEPPING STONES, AND SWEEPSTAKES
RECENT INTRODUCTIONS AND INVASIONS BY NONNATIVE SPECIES
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
CHAPTER 9: EVOLUTION, SPECIATION, AND EXTINCTION
EVOLUTION AND SPECIATION
GEOGRAPHY AND EVOLUTION: FOUNDER EFFECTS, BOTTLENECKS, VICARIANCE EVENTS, ADAPTIVE RADIATION, AND EVOLUTIONARY CONVERGENCE
EXTINCTION
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN EXTINCTION, EVOLUTION, AND DIVERSITY
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
CHAPTER 10: REALMS, REGIONS, KINGDOMS, AND PROVINCES: THE BIOGEOGRAPHIC SUBDIVISIONS OF THE EARTH
DEFINING BIOGEOGRAPHIC REALMS, REGIONS, KINGDOMS, AND PROVINCES
DETERMINING THE BOUNDARIES BETWEEN REGIONS
FACTORS BEHIND THE BIOGEOGRAPHIC REGIONS
THE BIOGEOGRAPHIC REGIONS
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
CHAPTER 11: BIOGEOGRAPHY AND HUMAN EVOLUTION
THE PRIMATE LINKAGE
EARLY PRIMATES
THE HOMINIDS:
AUSTRALOPITHECUS
THE HOMINIDS: EARLY
HOMO
THE HOMINIDS:
HOMO SAPIENS
AND RECENT COUSINS
THE GEOGRAPHIC EXPANSION OF MODERN HUMANS
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
CHAPTER 12: HUMANS AS A FORCE IN EVOLUTION AND EXTINCTION
HUMANS AS AN EVOLUTIONARY FORCE
MODERN HUMANS AS A FORCE OF EXTINCTION
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
PART III: THEORY AND PRACTICE
CHAPTER 13: DESCRIPTION AND INTERPRETATION OF BIOGEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTIONS
MAPPING BIOGEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTIONS
BIOGEOGRAPHY OF RANGE SIZE AND RANGE SHAPE
COMMON BIOGEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTIONAL PATTERNS
BIOGEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTIONS AND THE RECONSTRUCTION OF EVOLUTIONARY HISTORY
BEYOND STRICT PANBIOGEOGRAPHY/VICARIANCE BIOGEOGRAPHY: DNA AND THE PHYLOGEOGRAPHIC REVOLUTION
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
CHAPTER 14: THE GEOGRAPHY OF BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
WHAT IS BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY?
HOW MANY DIFFERENT SPECIES ARE THERE ON EARTH?
LATITUDINAL AND ALTITUDINAL DIVERSITY GRADIENTS
CONTROLS ON GEOGRAPHIC GRADIENTS OF SPECIES DIVERSITY
ISLAND BIOGEOGRAPHY
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
CHAPTER 15: BIOGEOGRAPHY AND THE CONSERVATION CHALLENGES OF THE ANTHROPOCENE
THE VALUE OF CONSERVATION
ENDANGERED AND THREATENED SPECIES
BIOGEOGRAPHY AND ENDANGERED SPECIES
BIOGEOGRAPHY AND CONSERVATION PLANNING
GEOGRAPHIC STRATEGIES FOR SPECIES CONSERVATION AND BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION
REASONS FOR HOPE
FINAL REFLECTIONS
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
GLOSSARY OF KEY WORDS AND TERMS
INDEX
End User License Agreement
List of Tables
Chapter 2
TABLE 2.1 A Systematics (Taxonomic Hierarchy) of Eastern White Pine (Pinus...
Chapter 5
TABLE 5.1 Some Tree Species Found Growing Below or Above the Atlantic Fall‐...
TABLE 5.2 Impact of Dams on the Physical and Biological Conditions of Downs...
Chapter 6
TABLE 6.1 Primary Productivity of the Major Biomes
Chapter 8
TABLE 8.1 The Post‐Glacial Population Growth Rates (as Expressed as Doublin...
TABLE 8.2 Some of the Most Commonly Known Mammal Families of the Great Amer...
Chapter 9
TABLE 9.1 Comparison of Human Genome with Other Species
TABLE 9.2 Parallel Evolution in Anole (Anolis) Lizard Species in the Caribb...
TABLE 9.3 The Big Five Extinction Events
Chapter 10
TABLE 10.1 Biogeographic Similarity Between Treeline Conifers in Canada and...
Chapter 11
TABLE 11.1 Taxonomic Classification of Modern Humans
Chapter 14
TABLE 14.1 Approximate Average Numbers of New Species Described per Year in...
TABLE 14.2 Changes in Freshwater and Terrestrial Bird Species on Two Island...
Chapter 15
TABLE 15.1 Some Examples of Estimated per‐Hectare Annual Economic Value of ...
TABLE 15.2 A Summary of Mace and Lande (1991) Criteria for Assessing Threat...
TABLE 15.3 Number of Threatened Species by Geographic Region
TABLE 15.4 Various Spaceborne Remote Sensing Systems Used in the Mapping an...
TABLE 15.5 Some Simple Common Landscape Metrics Derived from Remote Sensing...
TABLE 15.6 Strategies for Sustainable Conservation in the Anthropocene
List of Illustrations
Chapter 1
FIGURE 1.1 The world distribution of alligator species
(Alligator mississipi
...
Chapter 2
FIGURE 2.1 White pine trees of the genus and species
Pinus strobus
growing i...
FIGURE 2.2 The needles, cones, and shapes of a mature eastern white pine
(Pi
...
FIGURE 2.3 The complexity of energy flow within an ecosystem illustrated by ...
FIGURE 2.4 The atmospheric stratification of the earth and the variation in ...
FIGURE 2.5 The seasonal orbital characteristics of the earth and the seasona...
FIGURE 2.6 Average monthly temperatures (°C) at the surface of the earth in ...
FIGURE 2.7 General circulation of the atmosphere and average annual precipit...
FIGURE 2.8 Simplified Köppen climate classification
FIGURE 2.9 The world’s major soil regions of the world and an idealized soil...
FIGURE 2.10 Life zones, light, temperature, and oxygen distributions in a sm...
FIGURE 2.11 Marine life zones, salinity, temperature, and oxygen distributio...
FIGURE 2.12 Ocean surface temperatures, salinity, currents, and major upwell...
Chapter 3
FIGURE 3.1 A stunted white spruce
(Picea glauca)
at the northern treeline in...
FIGURE 3.2 A generalized Photosynthesis Light Response Curve representing th...
FIGURE 3.3 The relationship between temperature and rate of photosynthesis (...
FIGURE 3.4 The relationship between the northern limits of spruce and July t...
FIGURE 3.5 Saguaro cacti
(Carnegiea gigantea)
growing in the Organ Pipe Cact...
FIGURE 3.6 The natural global distribution of palms and the susceptibility o...
FIGURE 3.7 The high resting metabolic rate of polar bears compared with spec...
FIGURE 3.8 The relation between January temperature and the northern limits ...
FIGURE 3.9 The distribution of the pinyon pine species
Pinus monophylla
and ...
FIGURE 3.10 A large baobab tree
(Adensonia digitata)
growing in Africa. Baob...
FIGURE 3.11 The relative abundance of C
3
and C
4
grass species in the flora o...
FIGURE 3.12 The range and population density of the eastern bluebird
(Sialia
...
FIGURE 3.13 The photosynthetic rate and population density of a hypothetical...
FIGURE 3.14 The niches of a hypothetical generalist plant species and a spec...
Chapter 4
FIGURE 4.1 The correspondence between the northern range limits of the monar...
FIGURE 4.2 The devastating impact of the accidental introduction of sea lamp...
FIGURE 4.3 Historical cyclic variations in the population sizes of the snows...
FIGURE 4.4 The distribution of kangaroo rat species in the southwestern Unit...
FIGURE 4.5 The distribution of three different chipmunk species on isolated ...
FIGURE 4.6 Some species of clownfish
(Amphiprion)
are not harmed by the pois...
FIGURE 4.7 Batesian mimicry for the South American butterfly subfamilies—Dis...
FIGURE 4.8 Distribution of the barnacle species
Balanus balanoides
and
Chtha
...
FIGURE 4.9 Hypothetical gradient distribution of four competing species and ...
FIGURE 4.10 The realized and potential niches of three hypothetical plant sp...
FIGURE 4.11 Canadian lynx
(Lynx canadensis)
and the closely related, but mor...
Chapter 5
FIGURE 5.1 An idealized “classical” secondary succession on an abandoned agr...
FIGURE 5.2 The multiple successional pathways evident for succession on sand...
FIGURE 5.3 Different‐aged patches that make up a portion of the Rocky Mounta...
FIGURE 5.4 The positive relationship between fuel biomass and fire temperatu...
FIGURE 5.5 An idealized representation of the relationship between temperatu...
FIGURE 5.6 A dense stand of young lodgepole pines
(Pinus contorta)
establish...
FIGURE 5.7 Idealized post‐fire succession in a boreal white spruce
(Picea gl
...
FIGURE 5.8 The expansion of mesquite
(Prosopsis)
shrubland at the expense of...
FIGURE 5.9 The major disturbance regimes of eastern North American forest ty...
FIGURE 5.10 A windblast destroyed the coniferous tree canopy and allows ligh...
FIGURE 5.11 Time‐lapse satellite imagery of the path of Hurricane Katrina (2...
FIGURE 5.12 The patchy soil conditions and vegetation of the Tana River floo...
FIGURE 5.13 Bald cypress
(Taxodium distichum)
trees in parts of the southeas...
FIGURE 5.14 The correspondence between the northern limits of bald cypress
(
...
FIGURE 5.15 An avalanche path has cleared a swath through coniferous forest....
FIGURE 5.16 In the years after the 1980 eruption, fireweed
(Epilobium angust
...
FIGURE 5.17 Vegetation succession on Mount Saint Helens from 1985 to 2016 as...
FIGURE 5.18 Engelmann spruce trees
(Picea engelmannii) (left)
killed by spru...
Chapter 6
FIGURE 6.1 The major vegetation communities (formations) of North America...
FIGURE 6.2 The ordination of plant species along a hypothetical environmenta...
FIGURE 6.3 The German geographer Alexander von Humboldt (1769–1859), who con...
FIGURE 6.4 Merriam’s life zones for the classification of North American veg...
FIGURE 6.5 The Holdridge System for classification of the world’s vegetation...
FIGURE 6.6 The relationship between the biomes and climate according to Whit...
FIGURE 6.7 Tropical rainforest structure and stratification
FIGURE 6.8 Buttress trunk (left) and a mass of epiphytes and lianas (right) ...
FIGURE 6.9 A large strangler fig (Ficus virens) in the rainforest of Queensl...
FIGURE 6.10 Mangrove stilt roots (left) and pneumatophores (right) from a si...
FIGURE 6.11 The loss of primary rainforest in Costa Rica from 1940 to 1983 (...
FIGURE 6.12 Dry tropical deciduous trees in northern Queensland, Australia. ...
FIGURE 6.13 Baobab tree (Adensonia digitata) in the savanna region of Mali (...
FIGURE 6.14 Small differences in topography and differences in drainage caus...
FIGURE 6.15 The grasslands, short woodlands, and wide diversity of large gra...
FIGURE 6.16 The desert regions of North America (Brown and Lomolino, 1998; M...
FIGURE 6.17 The relatively diverse succulent and nonsucculent vegetation of ...
FIGURE 6.18 The correlation between annual precipitation and the density of ...
FIGURE 6.19 Late summer picture of semi‐deciduous coastal sage scrub (foregr...
FIGURE 6.20 A remnant of tall grass prairie in Michigan. Although the above‐...
FIGURE 6.21 Major grassland formations of North America (Sims and Coupland, ...
FIGURE 6.22 Autumn foliage in an area of deciduous forest in New Hampshire. ...
FIGURE 6.23 Eastern North American temperate forest formations
FIGURE 6.24 Temperate deciduous forest understory in Quebec, Canada.
FIGURE 6.25 Summer fog delivering important moisture to a stand of Californi...
FIGURE 6.26 The cool and moist floor of the coastal temperate rainforest in ...
FIGURE 6.27 Winter of the boreal forest in the Yukon Territory of Canada. Th...
FIGURE 6.28 Fires detected by satellite remote sensing, mainly in the boreal...
FIGURE 6.29 The short vegetation cover of the Arctic tundra near Churchill, ...
FIGURE 6.30 The microclimatic conditions of the Arctic tundra in northern Sw...
Chapter 7
FIGURE 7.1 The geologic time scale with approximate ages of boundaries, and ...
FIGURE 7.2 The German geophysicist and Arctic explorer Alfred Wegener (1880–...
FIGURE 7.3 The distribution of
Glossopteris
floral macrofossils and the Perm...
FIGURE 7.4 A fossil of a
Glossopteris
leaf from Permian‐aged deposits in New...
FIGURE 7.5 The earth’s plates, zones of spreading and collisionand the H...
FIGURE 7.6 The movement of the major plates over the past 250 million years ...
FIGURE 7.7 The location of major ice sheets and major areas of continental s...
FIGURE 7.8 A packrat (
Neotoma
sp.) surrounded by urine‐cemented middens of p...
FIGURE 7.9 The modern distributions of eastern shrew
(Sorex fumens),
eastern...
FIGURE 7.10 Stacked variations in δ
18
O content values from benthic foraminif...
FIGURE 7.11 Changes in summer and winter insolation for the northern hemisph...
FIGURE 7.12 (
a
) Globally averaged observed temperature change over land and ...
FIGURE 7.13 Changes in atmospheric CO
2
concentrations for the past 800,000 y...
FIGURE 7.14 The historical instrumental record of variations in global tempe...
FIGURE 7.15 The melting and retreat of the Athabasca Glacier portion of the ...
Chapter 8
FIGURE 8.1 A cattle egret
(Bubulcus ibis)
. In the nineteenth century, the ca...
FIGURE 8.2 Coconut palm
(Cocos nucifera)
seeds germinating on a tropical bea...
FIGURE 8.3 The relationship between seed size and mortality by shading for a...
FIGURE 8.4 Seed dispersal curves for an anemochore
(Eucalyptus)
and the indi...
FIGURE 8.5 Examples of migration and irruption. Remarkable long‐distance ann...
FIGURE 8.6 Exponential and logistic population growth curves.
(Lower left)
A...
FIGURE 8.7 Example of apparent diffusion dispersal on a continental scale re...
FIGURE 8.8 The early spread of the house finch
(Carpodacus mexicanus)
by jum...
FIGURE 8.9 The logistic expansion of invading species spreading by either di...
FIGURE 8.10 The impact of an island stepping stone filter on mangrove specie...
FIGURE 8.11 Numbers of invasive plant and animal species based on internatio...
FIGURE 8.12 Cheatgrass
(Bromus tectorum),
an invasive annual plant from Eura...
FIGURE 8.13 A thick floating mat of the invasive plant species water hyacint...
FIGURE 8.14 Zebra mussels
(Dreissena polymorpha)
clog the intake pipes to a ...
FIGURE 8.15 Female Burmese python
(Python molurus bivittatus),
an invasive r...
Chapter 9
FIGURE 9.1 A cline in yarrow
(Achillea millefolium;
formerly classified as
A
...
FIGURE 9.2 Charles Darwin (1809–1882). Darwin was only in his 20s when he em...
FIGURE 9.3 Alfred Russel Wallace (1823–1913). Wallace began his scientific c...
FIGURE 9.4 Different possible modes of geographic speciation. The rectangles...
FIGURE 9.5 Example of evolutionary reduction in complexity. Simple grass flo...
FIGURE 9.6 Increasing diversity of tetrapod families over the past 350 milli...
FIGURE 9.7 The last surviving species of Hawaiian goose, the nene
(Branta sa
...
FIGURE 9.8 The modern distribution of two closely related tree species, lodg...
FIGURE 9.9 Two classic examples of adaptive radiation: honeycreepers from Ha...
FIGURE 9.10 An example of convergent evolution: mammals and ecologically sim...
FIGURE 9.11 The widespread local extinction of the North American buffalo
(B
...
FIGURE 9.12 A living fossil, the horseshoe crab
(Limulus)
. These relatives o...
FIGURE 9.13 Mathematical modeling results suggest how the duration of a spec...
FIGURE 9.14 The relationship between mass extinctions of genera and recovery...
Chapter 10
FIGURE 10.1 A generalized representation of the world’s faunal regions (larg...
FIGURE 10.2 The Wallacea region of southeastern Asia and Australia and sever...
FIGURE 10.3 The Late Cretaceous and Paleogene global dispersal of marsupial ...
FIGURE 10.4 The Late Jurassic to Cretaceous global dispersal of angiosperms...
FIGURE 10.5 The Late Cretaceous–Paleogene distribution of the southern beech...
FIGURE 10.6 Global marine biogeographic realms: 1. Inner Baltic Sea; 2. Blac...
Chapter 11
FIGURE 11.1 Modern distribution of African rainforest, possible Pleistocene ...
FIGURE 11.2 Lucy—the fossil skeleton of a female
Australopithecus afarensis
...
FIGURE 11.3 A history of the hominids. Authorities can differ on number and ...
FIGURE 11.4 The distribution of important
Australopithecus, Paranthropus,
an...
FIGURE 11.5 (a) The general geographic spread of modern humans (Homo sapiens...
Chapter 12
FIGURE 12.1 A generalized representation of the gradual development of moder...
FIGURE 12.2 Some important areas and minimum ages for domestication of selec...
FIGURE 12.3 Archaeological excavation through the ancient settlement layers ...
FIGURE 12.4 The author holds a portion of a Neolithic grindstone used to pro...
FIGURE 12.5 The initial spread of Neolithic agriculture in Europe and in Sou...
FIGURE 12.6 World extent of areas dominated by cropland (does not include pa...
FIGURE 12.7 The skeleton of a Jefferson mammoth
(Mammuthus jeffersonii)
at t...
FIGURE 12.8 Radiocarbon date evidence of presence and subsequent extinction ...
FIGURE 12.9 Conservative account of historical species extinctions based on ...
FIGURE 12.10 Museum specimen of the extinct North American passenger pigeon
Chapter 13
FIGURE 13.1 A dot map based on recorded collection sites for black spruce
(P
...
FIGURE 13.2 The typical geographic distribution of a plant species. The dist...
FIGURE 13.3 Size of the geographic ranges for North and Central American lan...
FIGURE 13.4 The relationship between range size and body mass for North Amer...
FIGURE 13.5 The relationship between the latitude and elevation at which a s...
FIGURE 13.6 The latitudinally elongated geographic range of Anna’s hummingbi...
FIGURE 13.7 Two examples of disjunct distributions. The least bittern
(Ixobr
...
FIGURE 13.8 A sweetbay magnolia
(Magnolia virginiana)
from the Everglades of...
FIGURE 13.9 A simplified cladogram for magnolias (representing angiosperms) ...
FIGURE 13.10 A three species and three area taxon‐area cladogram with vicari...
FIGURE 13.11 Some of the most important tracks suggested by panbiogeographic...
FIGURE 13.12 Paleogeographic history of continental movement from 160 millio...
Chapter 14
FIGURE 14.1 The logarithmic plots of the relationship between sampling area ...
FIGURE 14.2 The distribution of described species among different plant and ...
FIGURE 14.3 Swallowtail butterfly species richness in 10
o
latitudinal bands ...
FIGURE 14.4 Global species richness for mammals, birds, and amphibians for 1
FIGURE 14.5 Declining species richness of birds, mammals, and vascular plant...
FIGURE 14.6 Possible scenario of shrinkage and fragmentation of tropical rai...
FIGURE 14.7 Hypothetical resource gradients and niche spaces for species in ...
FIGURE 14.8 The relationship between bird species diversity in the deciduous...
FIGURE 14.9 The relationship between energy and moisture as measured by evap...
FIGURE 14.10 The relationship between island area and species richness for r...
FIGURE 14.11 The relationship between island area and species richness for n...
FIGURE 14.12 The impact of increasing isolation on the species richness of b...
FIGURE 14.13 Robert H. MacArthur (1930–1972) who along with Edward O. Wilson...
FIGURE 14.14 A graphical representation of the island theory of biogeography...
FIGURE 14.15 The relationship between the geologic/geomorphologic dynamics o...
FIGURE 14.16 A revised view of the theory of island biogeography by the auth...
Chapter 15
FIGURE 15.1 The major factors contributing to threat and endangerment to glo...
FIGURE 15.2 Habitat loss and fragmentation caused by the clearance of land f...
FIGURE 15.3 The largest and one of the most endangered bird species in North...
FIGURE 15.4 The past historical breeding sites of the Vancouver Island marmo...
FIGURE 15.5 Examples of geographic range eclipse with survival on the periph...
FIGURE 15.6 Global biodiversity hot spots have high numbers of vulnerable en...
FIGURE 15.7 The fragmented populations of desert bighorn sheep
(Ovis canaden
...
FIGURE 15.8 The relationship between animal body mass and the MAR associated...
FIGURE 15.9 Different shapes and configurations of conservation areas compar...
FIGURE 15.10 A schematic diagram of the application of gap analysis using a ...
FIGURE 15.11 PRODES satellite image of Amazonian forest clearance (light are...
FIGURE 15.12 A graphical representation of restoration aims and tradeoffs...
FIGURE 15.13 Observed changes in global populations, CO
2
emissions, and surf...
FIGURE 15.14 One estimate of the changes in the location of major terrestria...
FIGURE 15.15 Increase in the area of marine and terrestrial protected areas ...
FIGURE 15.16 California sea otters
(Enhydra lutris nereis)
in a seagrass bed...
Guide
Cover Page
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
PREFACE TO THE 2ND EDITION
ABOUT THE COMPANION WEBSITE
Begin Reading
GLOSSARY OF KEY WORDS AND TERMS
INDEX
Wiley End User License Agreement
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BIOGEOGRAPHY
Introduction to Space, Time, and Life
Second Edition
GLEN M. MACDONALD
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Library of Congress Cataloging‐in‐Publication DataNames: MacDonald, Glen Michael, author. | John Wiley & Sons, publisher.Title: Biogeography : introduction to space, time, and life / Glen MacDonald.Description: Second edition. | Hoboken, New Jersey : Wiley‐Blackwell, [2025] | Includes index.Identifiers: LCCN 2024031608 (print) | LCCN 2024031609 (ebook) | ISBN 9781119904588 (paperback) | ISBN 9781119904601 (adobe pdf) | ISBN 9781119904595 (epub)Subjects: LCSH: Biogeography.Classification: LCC QH84 .M24 2025 (print) | LCC QH84 (ebook) | DDC 578.09–dc23/eng20241001LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2024031608LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2024031609
Cover design: WileyCover image: © Glen M. MacDonald
PREFACE TO THE 2ND EDITION
The general goals of this 2nd Edition remain similar to the 1st edition. These are to provide an introduction to biogeography that reflects the fascination and importance of the field, but is understandable and engaging to university students from a wide variety of educational backgrounds and interests. The overall organization of the book has also remained similar to the 1st edition. In Part I we review some relevant concepts from the life and physical sciences. We then embark on an exploration of the current geographic distribution of life on the planet and its relationship to the environment. In Part II we explore the trajectory of the planet and life over geologic time. We consider the responses of species to changing environments through processes of dispersal, evolution and extinction. We include our own species in this consideration and examine the evolution of humans and our impact on the climate and the biosphere. In Part III we examine some of the important practices that biogeographers employ to collect data on plant and animal distributions, and some theories that have arisen in biogeography to provide general explanations for the patterns that are revealed. An important focus of Part III is studying the geographic patterns seen in global biodiversity. The final chapter of Part III tackles how biogeographic practices and theory can be applied to assist in addressing the pressing conservation challenges the world faces today. Biogeography is a field of study that is by its very nature global in scope. Accordingly, the research and examples presented here are drawn from throughout the world. Although the general goals and organization of the book remain the same, the world, and the discipline of biography, in important ways that must also be reflected in the new edition.
The 1st edition of Biogeography: Space, Time and Life was published two decades ago. Over that time the science of biogeography has advanced significantly. Techniques and data‐sets related to field surveying, geographic positioning systems, remote sensing, geographical information sciences, molecular genetics analysis, species distribution modelling and so on have seen remarkable growth. Citizen scientists are using mobile phone apps to greatly increase our knowledge of the geographical distributions of species and the environments they inhabit. Studies of the geologic history of the Earth, past environments, and the evolution and extinction of species have added incredible amounts of new information and refined our perspectives of life over time. The growth of biogeography and the new information on the spatial and temporal patterns of life on Earth has allowed biogeographers to refine previous theory, develop new theory, and in some cases discard previous ideas. It is hoped that this new edition, with many new examples, figures, tables and sources, captures and conveys this exciting growth. As a discipline, biogeography has also become more diverse in the past twenty years. Scholars from throughout the world are contributing important new information and insights. The ideas and examples presented in this text represent the work of thousands of scientists and scholars. These are cited at the end of each chapter. Hundreds are new to this edition. I encourage the readers to dive into these primary sources and learn and be inspired by the works I have drawn upon and been inspired by.
Over the past twenty years the impact of humans on the environment and the species we share the planet with has intensified. Significant forest and woodland clearances have occurred in many countries across the globe. It has been estimated that over 77,000 species of animals and plants are threatened by extinction, and it is widely acknowledged that this may be just the tip of the iceberg. Emissions of greenhouse gasses by human activities have increased and the global surface temperature has risen by about 0.2oC per‐decade. The acceleration of human impacts on the Earth’s environment have prompted some scientists to declare that we have entered a new geologic Epoch – the Anthropocene. The challenges posed to the sustainability of our planet are considerable. The current state of many of these challenges is provided in this new edition. Biogeography is playing an important role in tackling the sustainability challenges of the Anthropocene. The need for the insights and conservation solutions provided by biogeography is pressing. It is hoped that this book will help inspire you to take up these challenges, as a concerned citizen or a scientist yourself. You can make a very real and positive difference to the fate of life on our planet.
In closing, I wish to thank all of those who have made this second edition possible. The editorial and production staff at John Wiley & Sons who believed in the project, and provided support and patience during its long gestation are owed a debt of gratitude. Many colleagues at UCLA and elsewhere have kept me intellectually stimulated and generously shared their knowledge with me. I continue to learn so much from my undergraduate and graduate students. I thank them for sharing their questions, knowledge and energy with me. In particular, I thank my graduate students Joan Chimezie, Elly Fard, Jessie George, Jiwoo Han, Scott Lydon, Lisa Martinez and Ben Nauman for keeping me inspired during the heaviest research and writing for this edition. Finally, I owe a huge debt of gratitude to another biogeographer who also hails from the University of Toronto, my wife Joanne. Her understanding of the work, her support and her patience have been invaluable.
ABOUT THE COMPANION WEBSITE
This book is accompanied by a companion website:
www.wiley.com/go/macdonald/biogeography2e
The website includes:
PowerPoints of the figures
Gallery of images and videos
CHAPTER1AN INTRODUCTION
There cannot be many people who have never marveled at an unusual flower or animal, or contemplated the deeper history of the human race and how they, themselves, originated. Even those with the most casual interest in the environment know that today the earth abounds with an incredible diversity of interesting plants and animals, but many are facing grave threats due to habitat destruction, overhunting, and climate change. You may have wondered: How did this wonderful diversity of life, including our own species, arise; how did we get to this present state of environmental crisis; and what can we do about it? These are big questions, and in picking up this book you might be wondering what the science of biogeography can tell us about all of this.
If this is your first exposure to the science of biogeography, you probably have three basic questions: What exactly is biogeography? Why should I bother studying it? How will this book help me understand biogeography? Let’s start with a simple answer to the first question. Biogeography is the study of the past and present geographic distributions of plants and animals and other organisms.1 Of course, there is much more to it than that. We will explore this question further and expand on this definition presently, but first let us consider why you might want to study biogeography as an aid in understanding both the diversity of life and how we might conserve that diversity.
More than most sciences, biogeography helps us to understand and appreciate the living environment that we experience every single day. Biogeography helps us answer questions such as how the great diversity of life that we experience today arose, where the modern human species came from, and what we can do to preserve the natural environment in the face of increasing human population growth and environmental change. How does answering such questions directly affect you? When we think of nature we tend to think about distant national parks and wildlands. These are important, but let’s think about closer to home. You cannot set foot outside your door without seeing plants that are growing around you. Many of the plants you see are native to the area in which you live, but many others are exotic species that have been recently introduced by humans. You cannot escape hearing the calls of wild birds, some of which are native and some of which have been introduced. Even if you do not know the scientific names of the plants and animals near your home, you are familiar with the way they look and sound. At some point you must have wondered how this diversity of life around you arose and specifically where all of these different plants and animals that live near you originated. These plants and animals fill your neighborhood with beauty and interest. They can also provide more tangible benefits such as the trees that provide shade or shelter from winds, or the small fish that keep populations of mosquitos in check. These tangible benefits that arise from the diverse plants and animals around you are called ecosystem services. Biogeography helps you understand the plant and animal life that you encounter everyday where you live and that provide important ecosystem services to you on a daily basis.
If you have ventured far from your home, perhaps visiting another state, province, or country, you have undoubtedly noticed differences in the vegetation and animal life you encountered. For example, during the winter millions of people travel from the northeastern United States and Canada to enjoy the sunshine and palm‐lined beaches of southern Florida. The green vegetation of Florida contrasts greatly with the cold and leafless winter forests of the Northeast. Many animals found in Florida, such as alligators, are not found in the northeastern United States or in Canada. Why are alligators and most other plants and animals found in southern Florida not found in the Northeast? The obvious answer might be that these plants and animals require the warm and humid environment of Florida to survive. However, many plant and animal species from Florida are also absent from the other warm tropical and subtropical areas of the earth. Travel to South America, West Africa, Southeast Asia, or northeastern Australia and you will see palm trees and many interesting animals, including relatives of alligators such as crocodiles, but not a single native alligator (Fig. 1.1). Surprisingly, however, you will find native alligators in southern China. Why are certain plant and animal species limited to relatively small areas of the earth? Why are other types of organisms widely distributed? Why can’t you grow many of the plants found in Florida in a garden in New York?
An important role of biogeography is to record such geographic differences in vegetation and wildlife and seek to explain them. Biogeography can tell us why North American alligators (Alligator mississipiensis) are found only in warm, moist areas such as Florida and adjacent states. Biogeography can also help us to understand why alligators are also found in China (Alligator sinensis), and not in tropical regions of Africa and Australia. In studying biogeography, you will come to understand that a combination of geographical, environmental, and historical factors led to the great diversity and current geographic distribution of plant and animal life. In studying biogeography, you can develop a much greater awareness, understanding, and appreciation of the wonderful diversity of plant and animal life found on a global basis as well as the diversity of life that you encounter every single day.
The study of biogeography also helps us to appreciate the development and history of our own species. We do not stand as far apart from the natural world as we might think. Our development, both biologically and culturally, is influenced by geography, the earth’s physical environment, and interactions with other organisms. The evolution and spread of humans around the world make up one of the great stories of biogeography. At present, humans play an increasingly greater role in changing the world’s environments and have a significant impact on the lives of plants and animals with which they share the earth. We have helped some species spread throughout the world while driving others from much of their former habitat. Some plants and animals owe their existence to human activity. Sadly, many more species owe their extinction to us. Since our existence depends on our relationships with the other species of the earth, our future will ultimately be determined by how we treat them. Biogeography helps us understand where living organisms, including humans, have come from and where we and earth’s other inhabitants are potentially headed.
FIGURE 1.1 The world distribution of alligator species (Alligator mississipiensis and Alligator sinensis). Understanding why alligators are found only in North America and China is a classic biogeographical question. Alligators are found in warm subtropical regions because they cannot tolerate prolonged exposure to cold and freezing temperatures. In the geologic past, Europe, Asia, and North America were joined together in one large continent that experienced relatively warm climates. Therefore, the geographic range of the ancestors of modern alligators was much larger than it is today. Over time, as continents shifted, climate changed, and alligators faced competition from crocodiles and caimans, the geographic range of alligators became fragmented and small.
The ability of humans to alter the environment and affect the survival of plants and animals bestows a great deal of responsibility upon us. We are responsible for making sure our actions cause as little damage as possible to the natural environment. In this effort we will always face tradeoffs between the needs of people for food, resources, living space, and recreational areas, and the preservation and conservation of nature. In some cases, we can alter our activities to lessen the damage we cause. In other instances, we might try to restore damaged areas to a semblance of their natural state. In these enterprises, biogeography can provide important guidance. By examining the long‐term histories of plant and animal communities, biogeographers provide information on how humans have altered the environment. In studying the natural distributions of plants and animals, biogeographers can help preserve nature. Biogeography provides important guidance on how we are affecting the environment and what actions we can take to conserve resources and preserve natural environments.
The contrasting state of health of the North American alligator and its relative, the Chinese alligator, underscores the conservation challenges facing biogeographers. According to the Wildlife Conservation Society, there are only 120 Chinese alligators remaining in the wild. This makes it the most endangered crocodilian (crocodiles and their relatives) in the world. Why are the North American alligator populations relatively healthy today and their Chinese relatives so endangered? What might be done to alleviate the risk to the Chinese alligator? Biogeography has much to contribute to such questions.
Let us now turn to further defining biogeography. In studying the present and past distributions of life, biogeographers have two basic tasks: description and explanation. Describing where a plant or animal species occurs today is the easiest part, and yet this task remains incomplete for vast numbers of plants, animals, and other organisms. So far, less than 3 million living species of plants, animals, and other organisms have been identified. It is thought that there may be a total of over 8 million eukaryotic species (organisms such as mammals, birds, insects, and plants that have cells contained in membranes) of which many remain to be discovered and scientifically described. When prokaryotic organisms such as bacteria are included, the total may jump to 2 billion or more. If our knowledge of present‐day species remains incomplete, it is even more difficult to reconstruct the past distributions of organisms because we must rely on fossil records that are often fragmentary and difficult to interpret. Explaining exactly how present and past distributions are controlled by the complex geographic, environmental, and historical factors that affect all organisms presents the greatest challenge. In order to understand how the physical and biological environment controls the distribution of plants and animals today, biogeographers must be familiar with concepts and techniques in physiology, anatomy, genetics, ecology, geomorphology, pedology (the study of soils), climatology, limnology (the study of lakes), and oceanography. In order to study how plants and animals were distributed in the past, biogeographers must know some basic geology, paleontology, and evolutionary biology. In studying our own biogeographic history and the relationship between humans and the other species of the earth, biogeographers also intersect in their interests with disciplines such as anthropology and archaeology. Since biogeography requires knowledge from a wide variety of other disciplines, it is called a synthetic science. The interests of the biogeographer blend and overlap with the interests of the ecologist, the evolutionary biologist, and the paleontologist to such an extent as to make the identification of firm boundaries between biogeography and these disciplines difficult. Indeed, it might be argued that from a life sciences perspective, all of these disciplines are subfields of biogeography. Given the synthetic nature of the field, it is not surprising that biogeographers can be found working in many different university departments, including geography, environmental science, sustainability, biology, geology, paleontology, and anthropology. Biogeographers can also be found working in park services, forestry services, environmental services, conservation groups, and private consulting firms.
Clearly, biogeography encompasses a huge area of the natural sciences. One way in which biogeographers tackle the complexity of their subject is to break it down into different subdisciplines. Phytogeography studies the present and past distributions of plants. Zoogeography examines the present and past distributions of animals. The biogeographic study of the modern relationships between organisms and the environment is called ecological biogeography. Some biogeographers concentrate on studying past distributions and the evolution of life. This line of inquiry is called phylogeography or historical biogeography. The field of analytical biogeography is concerned with developing general rules that explain how geography affects the evolution and distribution of plants and animals and how past distributions and evolutionary history are reflected in modern distributions. The application of the lessons learned from ecological, historical, and analytical biogeography, including the protection or restoration of the natural environment, is called conservation biogeography. In recent years much attention has been placed on the expanded concept of ecological sustainability, which is the capacity of the biosphere to meet the present and future needs of humans and other species. Biogeography has an important role to play in achieving this important goal for our planet.
So, what are the aims of this textbook, and how can it help you understand this fascinating and diverse field? The book is written to provide you with a solid introduction to the field of biogeography. It does not assume extensive background knowledge of biology, geography, or geology. There are, however, fundamental terms and concepts from these three fields that all biogeographers must know, and so they are outlined in this book. In Chapter 2 you will be introduced to some important basics of biology and physical geography including climatology, oceanography, and limnology. Later, in Chapter 7, we will explore some important concepts from geology regarding the history of the earth. Chapter 9 will provide some further primer material on genetics. Throughout the text, you will also be introduced to widely applied concepts from ecology and evolutionary biology. These concepts will be explained in detail, and their importance to biogeography will be highlighted.
In recognition of the ecological, historical, and analytical facets of biogeography, the book is divided into four major sections. The first section, called Space and Life, is concerned with ecological biogeography. In these chapters we will examine how present physical and biological conditions affect organisms and their distributions. Chapter 3 describes how physical conditions affect organisms and control their geographic distributions. In Chapter 4 we will look at the interactions that occur between different organisms and discuss how these biological factors can control geographic distributions. In Chapter 5 we will examine how disturbances such as fires or floods impact ecosystems and influence the geographic distribution of organisms. In Chapter 6 we will in particular explore the classification of life into global biomes that reflect the strong control of climate on vegetation.
The second section of the book concerns historical biogeography and is entitled Time and Life. In Chapter 7 we will discover how the physical geography of the earth has changed over the past 500 million years. We will also explore how the earth’s climate has undergone natural periodic changes. We will pay special attention to the shifts between glacial and nonglacial conditions that have occurred over the past 2 million years. We will conclude the chapter with a consideration of how human activity, particularly that related to increases in greenhouse gases, is now changing the climate of the planet. Chapter 8 will delve into how organisms change their distributions in response to changing geographic and environmental conditions. In Chapter 9 we will explore how the processes and patterns of evolution and extinction relate to changing environmental conditions and how geography affects these processes. Chapter 10 discusses how past and present processes play out in determining the major biogeographic regions of the earth. Chapters 11 and 12 examine the fascinating story of human evolution and some of the impacts of our species on the biosphere.
In the third section, entitled Theory and Practice, we put the concepts we have learned together to understand global distributions of plants and animals and how biogeography can be applied to their conservation and the sustainability of the earth. In Chapter 13 we will examine different general geographic patterns observed in the spatial distributions of species. Chapter 14 explores how overall biodiversity is distributed across the planet and the roles the environment, geography, and past history have on biodiversity.
Some people have argued that humans have so altered the planet that we have entered a new geological epoch referred to as the Anthropocene.Chapter 15 provides an exploration of conservation and ecological sustainability concepts and potential solutions to some of today’s challenges provided by biogeography. The final chapter will provide an outline of some of the current scientific tools and approaches that biogeographers use in conservation work.
One of the greatest attractions of biogeography comes from the wonderful variety of life and the fantastic adaptations that allow organisms to live in environments ranging from the coldest depths of the ocean to the hot sands of the Sahara Desert. Biogeography is a science concerned with life, and it should be lively! In this book you will be introduced to many examples of fantastic and wonderful plants and animals. These organisms, and the many interesting environments and communities in which they live, will be used to illustrate the concepts and theories of biogeography. We will also examine many real‐world examples of how biogeography has impacted people and how human activity has affected other organisms. These examples should make your studies more enjoyable and allow you to translate your knowledge of biogeography to the real world. In the end, when you travel across the world, walk down your own street, or look at yourself in the mirror, you will realize that you and every single plant, animal, and person you encounter is a result of, and contributor to, the biogeographical story of life.
KEY WORDS AND TERMS
Analytical biogeography
Anthropocene
Biogeography
Conservation biogeography
Ecological biogeography
Ecological sustainability
Ecosystem services
Historical biogeography
Phylogeography
Phytogeography
Zoogeography
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
Ding, Y., Wang, X., He, L., Shao, M., Xie, W., John, B. T., and Scott, T. M. (2001). Study on the current population and habitat of the wild Chinese alligator (Alligator sinensis).
Chinese Biodiversity
9
(2), 102–108.
Grunewald, K., and Bastian, O. (Eds.) (2015).
Ecosystem Services—Concept, Methods and Case Studies
. Springer, Berlin.
Larsen, B. B., Miller, E. C., Rhodes, M. K., and Wiens, J. J. (2017). Inordinate fondness multiplied and redistributed: the number of species on Earth and the new pie of life.
Quarterly Review of Biology
92
, 229–265.
Manolis, C. S., and Stevenson, C. (Eds.) (2010).
Crocodiles: Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan
, 3rd edition. Crocodile Specialist Group, Darwin, Australia.
Mora, C., Tittensor, D. P., Adl, S., Simpson, A. G., and Worm, B. (2011). How many species are there on Earth and in the ocean?
PLoS Biology
9
, e1001127.
Rands, M. R., Adams, W. M., Bennun, L., Butchart, S. H., Clements, A., Coomes, D., Entwistle, A., Hodge, I., Kapos, V., Scharlemann, J. P., and Sutherland, W. J. (2010). Biodiversity conservation: challenges beyond 2010.
Science
329
, 1298–1303.
Thorbjarnarson, J., Wang, X., Ming, S., He, L., Ding, Y., Wu, Y., and McMurry, S. T. (2002). Wild populations of the Chinese alligator approach extinction.
Biological Conservation
103
, 93–102.
Note
1
Throughout the text, key terms and concepts will appear in bold lettering. Short definitions for these terms and concepts can be found at the end of the book.
PARTISPACE AND LIFE
CHAPTER2SOME BASICS
Biogeography is a very wide ranging science, and accordingly biogeographers are a highly diverse group of scientists in terms of interests and perspectives. This multidisciplinary scope is one of the most satisfying aspects of biogeography—and one of the most challenging. Anthropology, biology, climatology, geography, and geology all contribute concepts, specialized vocabularies, and ways of classifying information that are important to biogeography. In order to understand and appreciate the science of biogeography, we must therefore have some knowledge of its foundations in these other sciences. Before we get down to the business of biogeography, we will review some key concepts from some of these associated disciplines. In this chapter, we will concentrate on aspects of biology and physical geography that are fundamental to biogeography. Later in this book we will discuss some concepts from geology and physical anthropology that are also important to biogeography. Much of the material that we cover here will be familiar to anyone who has taken introductory courses in biology and physical geography. However, even for those with such a background, a little review won’t hurt.
BIOLOGY AND THE HIERARCHIES OF LIFE
Biology can be defined as the science of life and all of its phenomena. Life on earth includes millions of different types of organisms, ranging from viruses to whales. The study of any of these organisms could include examination of myriad phenomena, from biochemical reactions within plant cells to the social behavior of pods of whales. It is clear that biologists face a daunting challenge! The science of biology tackles this immense task by breaking it down into smaller components that can be studied individually. One way to categorize and organize the constituent units of a large entity is to develop a hierarchy. A hierarchy is a system of organization in which components are ordered by rank. Most corporations are good examples of hierarchies. A large group of office staff is under the direction of one office manager, who, along with several other managers, is under the direction of the vice president of operations. The vice president, along with two or three other vice presidents, reports to the president of the firm. The president occupies the upper‐most level of the corporate hierarchy, and the office staff provides its base. Every biogeographer should be familiar with three important biological hierarchies: the taxonomic hierarchy, the ecological hierarchy, and the trophic hierarchy. We will examine each of these.
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Taxonomy is the subdiscipline of biology concerned with the classification and naming of organisms. Taxonomy is also known as systematics when the main goal is to determine the evolutionary relationship between groups of organisms. In this case, taxonomists are also called systematisists. The evolutionary histories of organisms that are reconstructed by systematisists are referred to as phylogenies. Taxonomists use observable traits, referred to as characters or character states, to group similar individual organisms together and to separate groups of different organisms. The groups that taxonomists develop are called taxa (the singular form is taxon). The characteristics that taxonomists use to classify organisms usually start with physical differences, such as color variations in flowers or in the plumage of different birds. Taxonomists may also consider differences that are apparent through chemical analysis of the tissue or fluids of the organism. Such studies are referred to as chemotaxonomy. Finally, cytotaxonomists examine the chromosome structure of organisms to detect genetic similarities and differences in order to classify organisms.
The classification and naming of organisms by individual taxonomists would not be very useful if everyone had their own system and terminology. Fortunately, there is a single system of taxonomic classification that is generally accepted by all biologists and biogeographers. The development of our present taxonomic system is at the foundation of biology and biogeography. It is a history that can be traced back to ancient Greece. The roots of the modern taxonomic system began with Aristotle (384–322 BCE1). Aristotle, a student of Plato, is best known as a philosopher but was also active in biology, physics, astronomy, and psychology. He developed an early scientific system for classifying animals into groups that shared similar features. Aristotle believed that the specific form and behavior of individual plants and animals were inherited and immutable. He considered that all individuals belonged to groups, or species (from the Greek word eidos
