Functional aspects and ecological implications in Pleistocene endemic herbivores of Mediterranean Islands

Abstract

The endemic herbivores of Pleistocene Mediterranean Islands, in their processes of adaptation and speciation, show two main tendencies: size variations, widely described in the case of size reduction, and morphological and functional variations, mainly concerning the distal segment of limbs. In the so‐called pachyderms (elephants and hippos) adaptive morphologies are added to variations due to size reduction and point out a cursorial attitude. The endemic insular cervids show perhaps less remarkable functional modifications, but these modifications demonstrate that each form acquire characteristic adaptations, in function of their ecological niche. The modifications of endemic bovids are less known with exception of the dwarf balearic bovids, in which the evolutive process prouced remarkable cranial, dental and limb modifications.