Characteristic pattern of species diversity on the Canary Islands

Auteur(s) et Affiliation(s)



Description :
The AA. use an island specific presence/absence data set for the Canary Islands' Arthropoda, Spermatophyta, Fungi, Lichenes, Bryophyta, Mollusca, Chordata, Pteridophyta, Annelida and Nematoda to assess the relative influence of environmental and historical factors on species distribution and endemism. Species richness and the percentage of island endemic species as well as similarity indices for island comparisons were calculated for all species groups. The pattern of species richness is best explained by island elevation. A similar pattern is detected for the percentage of single island endemics (pSIE), a factor associated with speciation. Thus, the AA. conclude that correlations between species richness and pSIE, identified in previous studies, could represent an artefact related to differing degrees of isolation between zonal attitudinal ecosystems.


Type de document :
Article de périodique

Source :
Erdkunde, issn : 0014-0015, 2010, vol. 64, n°. 1, p. 57-71, nombre de pages : 15, Références bibliographiques : 3 p.

Date :
2010

Editeur :
Pays édition : Allemagne, Kleve, Boss