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 …

The systematic biology of the palm family (Arecaceae) is probably better known than that of
any other tropical plant family of comparable size. As a result, the palms are now regarded …

The linking of North and South America by the Isthmus of Panama had major impacts on
global climate, oceanic and atmospheric currents, and biodiversity, yet the timing of this …

Abstract Aim The tomato family Solanaceae is distributed on all major continents except
Antarctica and has its centre of diversity in South America. Its worldwide distribution …

Snakes of the cosmopolitan family Viperidae comprise around 329 venomous species
showing a striking heterogeneity in species richness among lineages. While the subfamily …

This paper and this issue attempt to address how, when and why the phenomenal c.
100,000 species of seed plants in tropical America (the Neotropics) arose. It is increasingly …

Premise of the Study A key question in evolutionary biology is why some clades are more
successful by being widespread geographically, biome diverse, or species‐rich. To extend …

The Standard Model of the formation of the Isthmus of Panama proposes that final closure
occurred at 4–3 Ma. The model is based on evidence from studies of marine stratigraphy …

Extremely high levels of plant diversity in the American tropics are derived from multiple
interactions between biotic and abiotic factors. Previous studies have focused on macro …

Abstract Aim Dioscorea (Dioscoreaceae) is a predominantly pantropical genus (< 600
species) that includes the third most important tropical tuber crop and species of …