Palaearctic faunal region

views updated Jun 11 2018

Palaearctic faunal region The region that includes Europe, Asia north of the Himalayan–Tibetan physical barrier, N. Africa, and much of Arabia. Despite its size and great range of habitats, the faunal variety in it is far less than that of the Ethiopian and Oriental faunal regions to the south of it (e.g. monkeys are nearly absent and reptiles few in number). The region is similar at the family level, and rather less so at the generic level, to the Nearctic region: the Bering land bridge connected the two for much of the Cenozoic Era, and they are often combined into one region, Holarctica.

Palaearctic faunal region

views updated Jun 08 2018

Palaearctic faunal region The region that includes Europe, Asia north of the Himalayan–Tibetan physical barrier, North Africa, and much of Arabia. Despite its size and great range of habitats, the faunal variety in it is far less than that of the Ethiopian and Oriental faunal regions to the south of it (e.g. monkeys are nearly absent and reptiles few in number). The region is similar at the family level, and rather less so at the generic level, to the Nearctic region; the Bering land bridge connected the two for much of the Cenozoic Era.

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