California is globally renowned for its biological diversity, including its wealth of unique, or <i>endemic,</i> species. Many reasons have been cited to explain this abundance: the complex geology and topography of its landscape, the special powers of its Mediterranean-type climate, and the historic and modern barriers to the wider dispersal of its flora and fauna. <i>Plant and Animal Endemism in California</i> compiles and synthesizes a wealth of data on this singular...
