Ecology 5th Edition by Manuel Molles

Exercise 5

Refer to figure 22.5, which MacArthur and Wilson (1963) used to show how isolation affects species richness on islands. Find a detailed map of the Pacific Ocean and locate New Guinea. Next locate as many of the "near," "intermediate," and "far" islands on the map as you can. This will give you a better sense of the distances represented by the islands. How do the numbers of species on near, intermediate, and far islands support the hypothesis that island isolation tends to reduce species richness?
Figure 22.5 Distance from New Guinea and bird species richness on Pacific islands (data from MacArthur and Wilson 1963).