island hopping The colonization of an island or islands by plants and animals from an adjacent island or islands. Birds are particularly likely to hop from one island to another. Over geological time, islands move away from their areas of origin by continental drift. The descendant biotas may maintain themselves in the ancestral environment by island hopping on to successively younger islands as these emerge.

island hopping The colonization of an island or islands by plants and animals from an adjacent island or islands. Birds are particularly likely to hop from one island to another. Over geological time, islands drift away from their areas of origin. The descendant biotas maintain themselves in the ancestral environment by island hopping on to successively younger islands as these emerge.

island hopping The colonization of an island or islands by plants and animals that move from an adjacent island or islands. Birds are particularly likely to island-hop. Over geological time, islands drift away from their areas of origin. The descendant biotas maintain themselves in the ancestral environment by island hopping on to successively younger islands as these emerge.