Islands have captured the imagination of scientists and the public for centuries-unique and rare environments, their isolation makes them natural laboratories for ecology and evolution. This authoritative, alphabetically arranged reference, featuring more than 200 succinct articles by leading scientists from around the world, provides broad coverage of all the island sciences. But what exactly is an island? The volume editors define it here as any discrete habitat isolated from other habitats by inhospitable surroundings. The Encyclopedia of Islands examines many such insular settings-oceanic and continental islands as well as places such as caves, mountaintops, and whale falls at the bottom of the ocean. This essential, one-stop resource, extensively illustrated with color photographs, clear maps, and graphics will introduce island science to a wide audience and spur further research on some of the planet's most fascinating habitats.
"An exceptionally concise and well-organized compilation of lucid accounts of the historical background and current research into all aspects of island science. Anyone with a serious interest in islands needs this tome close at hand."-Alex McBirney, author of Volcanology and Igneous Petrology
"Scientific research on islands has greatly expanded our knowledge not only of insular biology, but also of the ecological and evolutionary processes that shape biodiversity throughout the world. This beautifully illustrated volume is a comprehensive compendium of all topics related to islands and the science conducted on them. It will be an invaluable resource not only to ecologists and evolutionary biologists, but also to anthropologists, historians, geologists, conservationists, and anyone else interested in the wonderful diversity of islands and their inhabitants."-Jonathan Losos, author of Lizards in an Evolutionary Tree: Ecology and Adaptive Radiation of Anoles
"Encyclopedia of Islands is an excellent reference guide. I wish I'd had it onboard my vessel, the Sorcerer II, during our circumnavigation."-J. Craig Venter, President, J. Craig Venter Institute, and former Founder and Chair, The Institute for Genomic Research
"Happily spend hours flicking from one article to another, learning something while celebrating the wonderful diversity that is the world's islands."
