Historical State

Tropical rain forests have been in existence for hundreds of millions of years. Most of them come from fragments of the supercontinent of Gondwana during the Mesozoic era which included most of the land masses in the southern hemisphere. Landmass separation destroyed much of the rain forests amphibian diversity while drier climate fostered an increase in reptile diversity. In total, there were five regions of tropical rain forest that resulted from the division of landmasses. This includes tropical America, Africa, South East Asia, Madagascar, New Guinea, and small outliers in Australia. Incomplete fossil records make it difficult to gather specifics about the origin of the rainforest.