article · Annual Review of Marine Science
The formation of island faunas and fossil records stems from an intricate interplay between geodynamical factors, such as geology, climate, and sea levels, alongside biological, taphonomic, and historical mechanisms. Rather than viewing biology and geodynamics as opposing fields, scientific approaches should focus on aligning them. While geodynamical models must be constructed independently of biological assumptions, they still need to remain compatible with observed biological evidence. When patterns of animal dispersal conflict sharply with current geological models and necessitate highly unlikely scenarios, the underlying geological reconstructions should be reconsidered. New geophysical and geological findings are significantly altering current understanding of the Mozambique Channel's geodynamic history. Integrating these data establishes harmony between geodynamics and palaeobiogeography, offering more reliable and consistent interpretations of historical Earth processes.
Understanding how animals reached isolated landmasses like Madagascar requires reconciling geological history with evolutionary records. By updating geological models using fresh geophysical evidence from the Mozambique Channel, scientists can resolve long-standing debates about historical land connections and ocean crossings. This interdisciplinary approach produces more accurate reconstructions of the Earth's climatic, geological, and biological past.
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Insular faunas and fossil assemblages result from a complex interaction of geodynamical (geological, climatic, and eustatic) and biological, taphonomic, and historical processes. The debate should not be framed as a contest between biology and geodynamics but rather as an effort to reconcile the two. Geodynamic reconstructions must remain independent of biological assumptions, yet they must also be consistent with biological evidence. If faunal dispersal patterns appear to contradict existing geological models to the extent that they require improbable explanations, then the fault likely lies in the geological reconstructions, which should be revisited. We present here how recent geophysical and geological data completely reshape our view of the geodynamic evolution of the Mozambique Channel and provide geodynamic and paleo-biogeographical coherence, leading to more robust and coherent reconstructions of Earth's past.
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DOI: 10.1146/annurev-marine-051325-104200
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