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Mediterranean Peninsulas: The Evolution of Hotspots

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Biodiversity Hotspots

Abstract

The Mediterranean peninsulas contain much genetic and species diversity, which decreases toward higher latitudes in Europe. In considering how such diversity evolved, three areas of activity seem important – Paleogeology, Paleoclimatology, and Phylogeography. The complex collision of the African and European tectonic plates produced the very different peninsulas of Iberia, Italy, and the Balkans. The climate cooled from 50 Mya with increasingly severe ice ages over the last 2 My that repeatedly modified species distributions and hence species evolution. As well as many endemic species, genetic methods show the peninsulas to have distinct genotypes in many species, with various postglacial histories. Their mountainous topography appears important for the survival of species through the ice ages and previously. In Iberia, mountains are the focus for multiple refugia, producing several diverged genetic lineages. Italy shows more recent subdivision through multiple refugia, particularly in the south. The Balkans has many more endemics, but fewer phylogeographic studies than other peninsulas. Multiple refugia and a range of lineage ages indicate continuous divergence and speciation over many millions of years to the present. The peninsulas are important as refugia for the survival of species and engines of speciation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. BIO, UEA, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, UK

    Godfrey M. Hewitt

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  1. Godfrey M. Hewitt
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Correspondence to Godfrey M. Hewitt .

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  1. , Mammal Collection, Natural History Museum Vienna, Burgring 7, Vienna, 1010, Austria

    Frank E. Zachos

  2. Naturelle, Luxembourg, Musée National de Histoire, rue Münster 25, Luxembourg, 2106, Luxembourg

    Jan Christian Habel

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Hewitt, G.M. (2011). Mediterranean Peninsulas: The Evolution of Hotspots. In: Zachos, F., Habel, J. (eds) Biodiversity Hotspots. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-20992-5_7

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