Evolution on Islands: from genomes to communities
Call for papers
“…it is not too much to say that when we have mastered the difficulties presented by the peculiarities of island life we shall find it comparatively easy to deal with the more complex and less clearly defined problems of continental distribution …”
Alfred Russel Wallace, Island Life (1902)
Islands have been central to our understanding of ecology and evolution. The development of the theory of natural selection (Darwin and Wallace, Galápagos and Malay Archipelago), modern synthesis (Mayr, Melanesia), community ecology (MacArthur and Wilson) benefited both from general biological patterns as well as idiosyncrasies found across the world’s islands.
This special issue will offer a synthesis of the latest research in island biology. It will be introduced by a joint perspective authored by Professor Rosemary G. Gillespie (University of California, Berkeley) and Professor Robert J. Whittaker (University of Oxford).
We welcome original research articles, short reports, and invited perspectives. Contributions may focus on a single island or archipelago or span multiple scales and systems. The special issue will focus on the following broad themes:
- Evolution and biogeography on archipelagos: what makes archipelagos unique and what are the generalities?
- What are the main research gaps in evolutionary island biology?
- Population genomics and phylogenomics of island taxa
- Trait evolution on short and long temporal scales
- Evolution of island endemism at multiple levels (from intra-specific microevolution, to macroevolution of insular radiations)
- Assembly of insular communities over evolutionary time scales
Submission – open until 5th December 2025
Please follow the below links to find out more about submitting your work to the Evolutionary Journal of the Linnean Society.
Please note that as the Evolutionary Journal of the Linnean Society is an open access online only journal, papers will appear online within 24hrs of acceptance, and on a rolling basis, thereby avoiding any delays to publication.
Guest editors
Dr. José Cerca (Swedish Museum of Natural History)
Prof. Sonya Clegg (University of Oxford)
Prof. Jun Ying Lim (National University of Singapore)
Prof. Luís Valente (Naturalis Biodiversity Center)
