Biogeography of Corals, Seagrasses, and Mangroves: An Alternative to the Center of Origin Concept

Abstract

McCoy, E. D., and K. L. Heck, Jr. (Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida 32306) 1976. Biogeography of corals, seagrasses, and mangroves: an alternative to the center of origin concept. Syst. Zool. 25:201–210.—A “center of origin” explanation for the distribution and diversity patterns of the organisms comprising the principal shallow-water habitats in the tropics—hermatypic corals, mangroves, and sea-grasses—is highly unlikely, based on fossil data and the dispersal capabilities of the organisms. Instead, these biogeographic patterns are better explained by the existence of a previously widely-distributed biota which has since been modified by tectonic events, speciation, and extinction, in accordance with modern geological and biogeographical theory.