Formation of the Isthmus of Panama

Aaron O'Dea; Orangel Aguilera; Marie-Pierre Aubry; William A. Berggren; Alberto L. Cione; Anthony G. Coates; Laurel S. Collins; Simon E. Coppard; Mario A. Cozzuol; Alan de Queiroz; Herman Duque-Caro; Ron I. Eytan; David W. Farris; German M. Gasparini; Ethan L. Grosmman; Jeremy B. C. Jackson; Kenneth G. Johnson; Lloyd D. Keigwin; Nancy Knowlton; Egbert G. Leigh; Jill S. Leonard-Pingel; Hailaos A. Lessios; Peter B. Marko; Richard D. Norris; Paola G. Rachello-Dolmen; Sergio A. Restrepo-Moreno; Leopoldo Soibelzon; Robert F. Stallard; Jonathan A. Todd; Geerat J. Vermeiju; Michael O. Woodburne

doi:10.1126/sciadv.1600883

Formation of the Isthmus of Panama

Science Advances

By: Aaron O'Dea, Orangel Aguilera, Marie-Pierre Aubry, William A. Berggren, Alberto L. Cione, Anthony G. Coates, Laurel S. Collins, Simon E. Coppard, Mario A. Cozzuol, Alan de Queiroz, Herman Duque-Caro, Ron I. Eytan, David W. Farris, German M. Gasparini, Ethan L. Grosmman, Jeremy B. C. Jackson, Kenneth G. Johnson, Lloyd D. Keigwin, Nancy Knowlton, Egbert G. Leigh, Jill S. Leonard-Pingel, Hailaos A. Lessios, Peter B. Marko, Richard D. Norris, Paola G. Rachello-Dolmen, Sergio A. Restrepo-Moreno, Leopoldo Soibelzon, Robert F. Stallard, Jonathan A. Todd, Geerat J. Vermeiju, and Michael O. Woodburne

https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.1600883

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Abstract

The formation of the Isthmus of Panama stands as one of the greatest natural events of the Cenozoic, driving profound biotic transformations on land and in the oceans. Some recent studies suggest that the Isthmus formed many millions of years earlier than the widely recognized age of approximately 3 million years ago (Ma), a result that if true would revolutionize our understanding of environmental, ecological, and evolutionary change across the Americas. To bring clarity to the question of when the Isthmus of Panama formed, we provide an exhaustive review and reanalysis of geological, paleontological, and molecular records. These independent lines of evidence converge upon a cohesive narrative of gradually emerging land and constricting seaways, with formation of the Isthmus of Panama sensu stricto around 2.8 Ma. The evidence used to support an older isthmus is inconclusive, and we caution against the uncritical acceptance of an isthmus before the Pliocene.

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Additional publication details
Publication type	Article
Publication Subtype	Journal Article
Title	Formation of the Isthmus of Panama
Series title	Science Advances
DOI	10.1126/sciadv.1600883
Edition	8
Volume	2
Year Published	2016
Language	English
Publisher	American Association for the Advancement of Science
Contributing office(s)	National Research Program - Central Branch
Description	12 p.
First page	1
Last page	11
Country	Columbia, Panama
Online Only (Y/N)	N
Additional Online Files (Y/N)	N
Google Analytic Metrics	Metrics page