Island Life:

£850 · Offered by Shapero Rare Books

First edition, first impression of this significant volume by the co-discoverer of evolution by natural selection. This copy with the bookplate of the author and nautical chart publisher James Frederick Imray (1829-1891). Island Life was 'a popular supplement to and completion of' Wallace's Geographical Distribution of Animals (preface), and 'was one of his most successful books. It surveyed the problems of the dispersal and speciation of plants and animals on islands which he categorized, following Darwin, as oceanic or continental. The latter type Wallace subdivided into "continental islands of recent origin", like Great Britain, and ancient continental islands, such as Madagascar. Unlike Darwin's theories of erratic spread to account for the discontinuous distribution of types, Wallace favoured theories of continuous spread followed by selective extinctions thus creating the appearance of gaps' (Darwin Online). First edition, first impression; large 8vo; 2 maps, colour map frontispiece, engravings throughout the text, single leaf of undated publisher's ads at rear, foxing to early and late leaves and occasionally to contents, bookplate of James Frederick Imray, corners of FF5 and FF6 torn, the latter with loss not affecting text; original green pebble-patterned cloth blocked in gilt and black, brown coated endpapers, spine rolled, cloth rubbed with wear at the joints and corners, corners bumped, closed tear in the cloth at the head of the spine, very good condition; 526pp.

• Binding: Hardcover

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