Central American Seaway

The evidence for when the Central American landmass emerged and the closing of the Central American Seaway can be divided into three categories. The first is the direct geologic observation of crustal thickening and submarine deposits in Central America. The second is the Great American Interchange of vertebrates between North and South America which required a continuous land bridge across the two areas for the organisms to travel along with a climate that was very different from the climate today. Lastly is the development of differences in marine assemblages and their isotopic signatures in the Caribbean from those in the Pacific. The Central American Seaway was closed by the elevating of the Isthmus of Panama which is proposed to have occurred 3.5 Ma. The closing of the Central American Seaway is also supported by the evolution of taxa on different sides of the isthmus along with the different histories of the oceans on either side of the isthmus. The first closure and the final closure remain a matter for debate. • Direct geologic observation of crustal thickening and submarine deposits in Central America • It is postulated that the geological collision started about 25 Ma, the deep ocean connections had ceased by between 12 and 9.2 Ma, and the final shallow temporary connection terminated at the latest by 2.45 Ma. • The earliest recent literature date for first closure is 15 Ma. • Great American Interchange • The first exchanges (land) and separation of species (sea) took place by 20 Ma, • Development of differences in marine assemblages and their isotopic signatures in the Caribbean from those in the Pacific • The saline and carbon data are fairly suggestive for a range of surface water interface loss between 4.6 and 4.2 Ma. ==Consequences==

The closing of the seaway allowed a major migration of land mammals between North and South America, known as the Great American Interchange. That allowed species of mammals such as cats, canids, horses, elephants, and camels to migrate from North America to South America, and porcupines, ground sloths, glyptodonts and terror birds made the reverse migration. There is much controversy about glacial and interglacial climates in South America. Research shows that vegetation in most of the Amazon basin has changed very little since glacial times, but it is believed there was more savanna present during that period. A closed seaway would have led to a very different North Atlantic Ocean circulation, but it impacted the surrounding atmospheric temperatures, which in turn affected the glacial cycle. The emergence of the isthmus caused a reflection of the westward-flowing North Equatorial Current northward and enhanced the northward-flowing Gulf Stream. The Pacific coast of South America would have cooled as the input of warm water from the Caribbean was cut off. That trend is thought to have caused the extinction of the marine sloths of the area. The closure of the seaway led to an increased poleward salt and heat transport, which strengthened the North Atlantic thermohaline circulation 2.95–2.82 Ma. That in turn increased the moisture supply to Arctic latitudes, which contributed to both Arctic continental glaciation and sea ice formation. With the aid of the orbitally-paced extension of Gelasian ice sheets, this eventually led to the Quaternary ice age. == See also ==