Biogeography, the study of the distribution of life on Earth, has
undergone more conceptual changes, revolutions and turf wars than any
other scientific field. Australasian biogeographers are responsible for
several of these great upheavals, including debates on cladistics,
panbiogeography and the drowning of New Zealand, some of which have
significantly shaped present-day studies.
Australasian biogeography has been caught in a cycle of reinvention that
has lasted for over 150 years. The biogeographic research making
headlines today is merely a shadow of past practices, having barely
advanced scientifically. Fundamental biogeographic questions raised by
naturalists a century ago remain unanswered, yet are as relevant today
as they were then. Scientists still do not know whether Australia and
New Zealand are natural biotic areas or if they are in fact artificial
amalgamations of areas. The same question goes for all biotic areas in
Australasia: are they real?
Reinvention of Australasian Biogeography tells the story of the
history of Australasian biogeography, enabling understanding of the
cycle of reinvention and the means by which to break it, and paves the
way for future biogeographical research.
The book will be a valuable resource for biological and geographical
scientists, especially those working in biogeography, biodiversity,
ecology and conservation. It will also be of interest to historians of
science.
