Island hopping in Drosophila: patterns and processes.

Radiation of Drosophila along the Hawaiian archipelago has resulted in an astounding array of diversity. The speciation in this group corresponds well to the geological history of the region and colonization events appear to have been a major contributing factor. Although much less impressive in terms of diversity, Drosophila have also radiated throughout the Caribbean islands. In contrast to the pattern exhibited in Hawaii, major changes that distinguish the species in the Caribbean are not always coupled to colonization events. The patterns of speciation for these two island groups are compared and contrasted in light of founder effect speciation models.