Understanding the relationship between dispersal and range size

Abstract The drivers of variability in species range sizes remain an outstanding enigma in ecology. The theoretical expectation of a positive dispersal‐range size relationship has received mixed empirical support, despite dispersal being one of the most prominent hypothesised predictors of range size. Here, we synthesised results from 86 studies examining the dispersal‐range size relationship for plants and animals in marine, terrestrial and freshwater realms. Overall, our meta‐analysis showed that dispersal positively affects range size, but its effect is dependent on the clade and dispersal proxy studied. Moreover, despite potential differences in habitat connectivity, we did not find an effect of realm on the dispersal‐range size relationship. Finally, the strength of the dispersal‐range size relationship was dependent on latitude, range size metric and the taxonomic breadth of the study clade. Our synthesis emphasizes the importance of developing a mechanistic understanding of the trait to dispersal to range size relationship, considering the complexity of dispersal departure, transfer and settlement, as well as evolutionary components such as time for range expansion, speciation and past geological–environmental dynamics. We, therefore, call for a more integrative view of the dispersal process and its causal relationship with range size.