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Island Biogeography and Landscape Ecology

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Mediterranean Island Landscapes

Part of the book series: Landscape Series ((LAEC,volume 9))

MacArthur and Wilson’s theory (1967) set out to identify and measure the variables involved in the colonisation of islands by biota and their subsequent evolution or extinction. The key biogeographical variables identified by their theory were island size and distance from the mainland. They suggested that an island’s biodiversity is proportionate to the island’s size (i.e. the larger the island the higher the species number) and inversely proportionate to its distance from the mainland (i.e. more remote islands tend to support less species). Equally significantly they argued that the number of species on an island is in a state of dynamic equilibrium – diversity eventually stabilises but turnover remains high as species continually colonise and go extinct. Dynamism is a defining concept when attempting to understand the biogeography of islands and, in the Mediterranean in particular, the impact of human activity over millennia has resulted in very high levels of dynamism with profound consequences for the biota.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Agriculture Policy and Development, University of Reading, RG6 6AR, Reading, UK

    Ioannis Vogiatzakis

  2. Department of Geography, University of Reading, RG6 6AR, Reading, UK

    Geoffrey H. Griffiths

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  1. Ioannis Vogiatzakis
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Agriculture Policy and Development, University of Reading, RG6 6AR, Reading, UK

    Ioannis Vogiatzakis

  2. CCLP & University of Cambridge, UK

    G. Pungetti

  3. University of Reading, RG6 6AB, Reading, UK

    A. M. Mannion

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Vogiatzakis, I., Griffiths, G.H. (2008). Island Biogeography and Landscape Ecology. In: Vogiatzakis, I., Pungetti, G., Mannion, A.M. (eds) Mediterranean Island Landscapes. Landscape Series, vol 9. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-5064-0_4

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