insular dwarfism

[ in-suh-ler dwawr-fiz-uhm, ins-yuh‐ ]

noun

, Biology.

1. the process or result of evolving over many generations from an animal of standard size to one of much reduced size, especially evidenced on islands, where the contained environment limits the species’ range and available resources, as exemplified by the island fox, which inhabits the Channel Islands of California: insular dwarfism also occurs in certain plant species, but the studies of such are relatively limited.

Word History and Origins

Origin of insular dwarfism¹

First recorded in 1950–55