island habitats
Surrounded land environments
Island habitats are the ecosystems found on islands, characterized by isolation from mainland environments.
This isolation produces distinctive features: limited species diversity, high rates of endemic species found nowhere else, and organisms that evolve unusual traits like flightlessness or gigantism.
The Galápagos island habitats shaped Darwin's thinking on evolution.
Island habitats are particularly vulnerable to invasive species and habitat destruction.
- archipelagoChain of scattered islands
- atollRing-shaped reef island
- endemic speciesLife found nowhere else
- nestingMaking a dwelling
- sea turtle nestingBeach egg burial behavior
bird sanctuary · land snails · ecosystem · relict species · rare orchids · indigenous knowledge · invasive species · genetic drift · seamount · food web · cay · seabird · coral reef · tropical paradise · palm trees · palm · remote wilderness · speciation