[ABSTRACT]
Champions of biodiversity. A weevil genus beats records of explosive evolutive radiation on oceanic island in Macaronesia. The swarm of 261 species and subspecies in Madeira, Salvages and the Canary Islands is the result of a blend of adaptive and non-adaptive evolution in old volcanic archipelagos. Within a timeframe of about 9 million years, sequential radiation events have generated 25 monophyletic groups that have been recognised as subgenera of Laparocerus. Colonisation routes, habitat shifts, disruption of populations by volcanism, dispersal by massive landslides, and other important factors for speciation are discussed in depth. If oceanic islands have been traditionally considered as laboratories of evolution and species-producing machines, Laparocerus will become an ideal model species for broadening research into dispersal and speciation processes of all kinds. Such a group provides a fine-grain picture of nature and evolution at work. To assist in this endeavour, this book provides a full revision of the genus Laparocerus, with descriptions of all taxa—doubling the number previously known—keys for their identification, 374 macro-photographs of the imagos, 50 plates with line-drawings of their genitalia and other internal pieces, and 47 distribution maps. It also incorporates a detailed anatomical study (13 plates) of one species including preimaginal stages, and chapters dealing with their breeding biology, ecology (food-plants, habitats, etc.), and behaviour, duly illustrated. Their natural history, in other words.
Hardcover, 22.6 x 29 x 4 cm, 681 pages.
Published Oct. 2022
Availabe at Amazon and at Publicaciones Turquesa | Price 120 €
