The Central Paratethys Sea-rise and demise of a Miocene European marine biodiversity hotspot.

ABSTRACT: The Miocene Climate Optimum (MCO, ~ 17-14 Ma) was a time of extraordinary marine biodiversity in the Circum-Mediterranean Region. This boom is best recorded in the deposits of the vanished Central Paratethys Sea, which covered large parts of central to southeastern Europe. This sea harbored an extraordinary tropical to subtropical biotic diversity. Here, we present a georeferenced dataset of 859 gastropod species and discuss geodynamics and climate as the main drivers to explain the changes in diversity. The tectonic reorganization around the Early/Middle Miocene boundary resulted in the formation of an archipelago-like landscape and favorable conditions of the MCO allowed the establishment of coral reefs. Both factors increased habitat heterogeneity, which boosted species richness. The su

SUBMITTER: Harzhauser M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11250865 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature