Speciation happens in company – not in isolation

Abstract

Oceanic islands are considered the classic arenas for allopatric speciation and adaptive radiation. Established concepts of speciation and endemism are strongly focused on spatial and temporal scales. However, biotic interactions and ecological drivers, although widely recognized as playing a role, still need to be integrated into our understanding of these processes. Here, I highlight ecosystems as the evolutionary arena within islands. Ecosystem functioning, such as the regulation of abiotic fluxes of energy and matter, has been intensely studied in the context of climate change and biodiversity loss. Biogeography, on the other hand, when it focuses on speciation and endemism, often lacks a functional understanding of the ecosystem beyond species lists. This contribution aims to stimulate a stronger integration of ecological processes, assembly rules, and vegetation structures into future biogeographical and macroecological studies.