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ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES 



Europe, including those noted below which came into Europe from 

 Africa. The contrary theory of the relative geographic isolation of 

 Africa and Europe in Quaternary times originated with Pomel 7 as the 

 result of his exhaustive review of the entire fauna of north Africa. He 

 concludes that since the resemblances between the European and north 

 African faunas are rare and often doubtful, the two continents were 

 for long periods separated by the Mediterranean Sea and Straits of 

 Gibraltar. 



Fig. 1. — Pleistocene, or Ice Age 

 A period of maximum total elevation facilitating free migrations and invasions of life, 

 culminating in the Glacial epoch, and followed by a prolonged depression. Portions of 

 northern Europe and the coasts of North America greatly depressed. Then a period of 

 reelevation. Rearranged after W. D. Matthew. 1908. 



Climate. — At the beginning of the Quaternary Period north Africa 

 was characterized by abundant rainfall which led to the formation of 

 great alluvial or flood-plain depositions. In the Barbary and Sahara 

 regions the life was closely similar to the grand plateau life of equatorial 

 Africa at the present time, including elephants, rhinoceroses, zebras, 

 wild asses, giraffes, wild cattle, buffalo, antelopes, gazelles, gnus, elands, 

 hippopotami, wart-hogs, lions and hyaenas. The presence of these ani- 



7 Pomel, A. : "Les Elephants Quaternaires." Carte Geol. Algene, Paleont. Monogr. 

 Algiers, 1895. 



