Oceanic island archipelagos are profoundly interesting ecosystems in which to ask questions about evolutionary patterns and processes. Their isolation from other land masses restricts numbers of plausible hypotheses that can be advanced to explain evolutionary events, often resulting in stronger scientific inferences. Island archipelagos may rightly be considered one of the best places on earth to understand origins and elaborations of biological diversity.

In recent years, interest in the evolution of plants on oceanic islands has increased with work appearing on the Hawaiian Islands, the Canary Islands, Bonin Islands (Japan), Juan Fernandez Islands (Chile) and numerous additional archipelagos. It seemed pertinent and timely, therefore, to bring persons together with experience in these different island groups for a new view of island plant biology.

The present papers resulted from a symposium convened by the coeditors at the XV International Botanical Congress in Yokohama, Japan, August 1993. The response from that symposium was very positive and suggested that publication of the presentations (in modified and up-dated form) would be highly desirable. Cambridge University Press agreed to take on the project. In addition to papers from the symposium itself, which focused on Pacific archipelagos, several additional invited manuscripts were solicited to provide an even stronger and more comprehensive review of the status of studies of plant evolution on oceanic islands.

It is clear from the chapters of this book that oceanic archipelagos do offer special opportunities for investigating evolutionary phenomena in vascular plants.