Self‐compatibility is over‐represented on islands

What is it about?

The prospects for a solitary organism on a remote island are not good. With proper nutrition and habitat, an individual can live out its days, but it cannot leave descendants without a mate. However, if this individual can fertilize itself, its fortune is reversed and this lone colonist can potentially give rise to a sustainable population. We show that this simple idea shapes the distribution of plant species across the world—in our study of over 1500 plant species, we find that plants capable of fertilizing themselves are disproportionately found on islands.

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