Carina Hoorn on the Evolution of the Amazon Basin

About this episode

Carina Hoorn discusses the evolution of biodiversity in the Amazon Basin driven by geological changes.

The Amazon Basin is the most biodiverse region on Earth, being the home of one in five of all bird species, one in five of all fish species, and over 40,000 plant species. In the podcast Carina Hoorn explains how the rise of the Andes and marine incursions drove an increase in biodiversity in the Early Miocene. This involved the arrival of fresh river-borne sediments from the eroding mountains and the diversification of aqueous environments caused by influxes of salt water during the marine incursions. Hoorn is an Associate Professor in the Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics at the University of Amsterdam and Research Associate at the Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Earth Science Section, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago.

People in this episode

Host: Oliver Strimpel

Guest: Carina Hoorn

Topics covered

• biodiversity
• Amazon Basin
• Andes
• marine incursions
• Early Miocene
• ecosystems

Keywords

• biodiversity
• Amazon Basin
• Andes
• marine incursions
• Early Miocene
• ecosystem dynamics
• plant species
• fish species
• bird species

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History

Places: Amazon Basin, Andes, Chicago

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