Colonization rate over time:
“Balanced by extinction” for colonization rate over time. This relationship follows from the ecological mechanism represented by the terms in the item, not merely from an association between their names. Larger islands usually support more habitats and larger populations, lowering extinction risk; less isolated islands receive colonists more readily and may experience rescue effects. These mechanisms also apply to habitat fragments that function as ecological islands. The remaining alternatives—“Always increasing”, “Always decreasing”, “Unpredictable”—refer to different states, processes, or s
Ref: The Theory of Island Biogeography, MacArthur & Wilson, Ch. 2-4
