THE GREAT AMERICAN BIOTIC INTERCHANGE: A SOUTH AMERICAN PERSPECTIVE

CIONE, A. L.; GASPARINI G.M.; SOIBELZON, E.; SOIBELZON, L.H.; TONNI, E. P.

Springer

Año: 2015 p. 126

978-94-017-9791-7

The Great American Biotic Interchange (GABI) between North andSouth America is one of the most important events in the history of land mammals.The interchange occurred in several phases during more than nine millionyears. The oldest genera of North American origin in southern South Americaoccur in beds of Late Miocene age. However, the major episodes of mammaliandispersal from North America appear to have occurred from the Marplatan (LatestPliocene?Early Pleistocene) to the Lujanian (Late Pleistocene?Early Holocene).In this book, we focus on mammals of southern South America, where the mostimportant and richest localities with fossil vertebrates of Late Miocene?Holoceneage were reported.The biotic interchange between the Americas occurred in several phasesduring more than nine million years. In this book, we focus on mammals of southernSouth America, where the most important and richest localities with fossil vertebratesof Late Miocene?Holocene Age were reported. We here provide basic informationabout taxonomic composition, biostratigraphy, climate evolution, continental tectonics,and biogeography for better understanding the GABI. Furthermore, we analyzethe chronology and dynamics of the GABI, the evolution of some South Americanmammalian groups through time, and the Quaternary mammalian extinctions. As theGABI was a complex process, we divide it into ProtoGABI and GABI 1 to 4.The Great American Biotic Interchange (GABI) between North andSouth America is one of the most important events in the history of land mammals.The interchange occurred in several phases during more than nine millionyears. We here analyze the chronology and dynamics of the GABI, the evolutionof some South American mammalian groups through time, and the Quaternarymammalian extinctions. As the GABI was a complex process, we divide it intoProtoGABI and GABI 1 to 4. In our concept, the extinction of the megafauna bythe gatherer/hunters that entered South American during the latest Pleistocene isa part of the GABI. The putative scarce frequency of extinct mammals in archeologicalsites is discussed. The evolutive relevance of the GABI is reflected in thathalf of the species living in South America had a North American ancestry. A finalprocess, not included in the GABI, is the remarkable alteration of ecosystems bymodern man. Presently, the composition and distribution of almost all autochthonousland mammal faunas are changing dramatically. Moreover, frequently theyare replaced with domesticated and/or wild exotic species.