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In an increasingly specialised world, biogeography is the natural result of the need to study the effects geography has on a biology and biodiversity.
What is biogeography?Biogeography is the study of the distribution of plants and animals around the world. The scope of the multidisciplined field includes how and why species are concentrated in a habitat and spans both historical and present conditions. For instance, biogeographers could study and theorize why frogs are so densly packed in the Amazon Rain Forest and not in the Saraha Desert. The field includes a synthesis of data from geography, biology and climatology. What to Biogeographers do?Biogeographers seek to understand the symbiosis between life and its environment. Viewing how a species has evolved over time can help piece together a picture of the region’s past geographical and climatological conditions and can also give scientists insight to biology of the species itself. Biogeography is also important in extrapolating the ripple effects of natural and man-made disasters from hurricanes to urban expansion on native species. Prominent BiogeographersBefore the theory of evolution was proposed, the discipline of biogeography was largely considered to be a branch of archaeology. As it was learned that species are still evolving today, the field was brought to the limelight to bring together new data about animals and how they’ve adapted to their surroundings. Classical scientist Alfred Russel Wallace, partner to Charles Darwin’s scientific conquests, was vital in bringing the study to forefront of science with the his 1876 book The Geographic Distribution of Animals. Biogeography CareersToday, one of many important tasks biogeographers take on is studying the effects of climate change on ecoregions. The Royal Geographical Society of Queensland suggests specific career paths within this field:
These are just three of the rewarding and interesting paths a biogeographer can embark on. In a 2000 Biogeography Speciality Group newsletter, club President Glen MacDonald declared that “the study of biogeography is thriving,” and later added, “we have not had such an active and rigorous research core for many years.” As a greater consensus on climate change is reached, it is clear that biogeography is not only an intriquing discipline, but also a growing necessity for an evolving world. Biogeography TermsBiodiversity: the variability species in a region Biome: the global scale community of plants and animals, the largest subdivision of a biosphere Life Zones: regions of comparable latitude and elevation containing similar plant species Further ReadingThe Theory of Island Biogeography by Robert H. MacArthur, Edward O. Wilson - Science - Princeton University Press (2001) - Paperback - 224 pages Biogeography by James H. Brown, Mark V. Lomolino - Science - Sinauer Associates (1998) - Hardback - 691 pages
The copyright of the article What is Biogeography? in Biogeography is owned by Stephanie Cox. Permission to republish What is Biogeography? in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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