The Song of the Dodo
An ecosystem is a tapestry of species and relationships. Chop away a section, isolate that section, and there arises the problem of unraveling.
David Quammen • The Song of the Dodo
The point is that islands are havens and breeding grounds for the unique and anomalous. They are natural laboratories of extravagant evolutionary experimentation.
David Quammen • The Song of the Dodo
BIOGEOGRAPHY IS THE study of the facts and the patterns of species distribution. It’s the science concerned with where animals are, where plants are, and where they are not.
David Quammen • The Song of the Dodo
Consequently islands have served as the Dick-and-Jane primers of evolutionary biology, helping scientists master enough vocabulary and grammar to begin to comprehend the more complex prose of the mainlands.
David Quammen • The Song of the Dodo
Islands give clarity to evolution.
David Quammen • The Song of the Dodo
An ecosystem is a tapestry of species and relationships. Chop away a section, isolate that section, and there arises the problem of unraveling.
David Quammen • The Song of the Dodo
BIOGEOGRAPHY IS THE study of the facts and the patterns of species distribution. It’s the science concerned with where animals are, where plants are, and where they are not.