ZOOGEOGRAPHIC REGIONS

The first attempt to divide the earth into a number of horizontal life regions based
upon the distribution of birds was made by Dr. P. L Sclater in 1857.
The regions proposed by Dr. Sclater were:

(i) Palaearctic
(ii) Ethiopian Palaeogaea
(iii) Indian
(iv) Australian

(v) Nearctic Neogaea

(vi) Neotropical
• The second distribution was carried out by Huxley in 1868. His
Scheme was regarded as Disproportionate and hence discarded

Nearctic
Palaearctic
Ethiopian
Indian
• In 1876, Alfred Russel Wallace, published “The geographical
distribution of Animals.”
• Reasons for selecting Wallace theory suitable for geographical
distribution of animals
I. Abundance of mammalian fossils show us more fully than any
other group, the features of distribution in the past ages.
II. The careful study of such fossils plus the knowledge of living forms
renders their distribution more accurately.
III. The limited means of dispersal possessed by mammals, their high
power of adaptations and organizations renders them less
dependent upon a particular kind of food or upon a particular
conditions of existence.
IV. Mammals are more conspicuous and can be easily monitored,
collected, observed, and examined.
• Thus, Zoogeographic regions may be defined as A portion of the
Earth’s surface having an assemblage of fauna, more particularly
mammalian fauna, which posses characterizing features
distinguishing them from other areas.

• Wallace retained the same classification as proposed by Sclater,

except the Oriental region is substituted for Indian region.

• Since Wallace’s time many modifications have been suggested by

later authors in the original scheme, but the Wallace classification is
still considered to be the most appropriate.
Six zoogeographic regions are as follow:
1. Palaearctic Region:
Subregions: European, Mediterranean, Siberian, and Manchurian.
2. Oriental Region:
Subregions: Indian, Ceylonese, Indochinese, and Indo-Malayan.
3. Ethiopian Region:
Subregions: East Africa, West Africa, South Africa, and Malagasy
4. Australian Region:
Subregions: Austro-Malayan, Australia, Polynesian, and New Zealand.
5. Neotropical Region:
Subregions: Chilean, Brazilian, Mexican, and Antillean.
6. Nearctic Region:
Subregions: Californian, and Canadian.
1. Palaearctic region:
• Largest Zoogeographic region
• Includes whole of Europe, northern parts of Africa, Northern China,
U.SS.R, Japan, Iran, Afghanistan, and Baluchistan (western province
of Pakistan)
• Physical geographic features:
• It is bounded by sea from north, west, and east.
• On the South, lies Himalayan range and Sahara desert.
• It is therefore, in continuous land connections with two of the neighboring
Ethiopian and Oriental regions, from which it is separated by a desert
• From another, Nearctic region it is cut off by sea
• Climate:
• Temperate
• Wet Forest land
• Dry Steppe land
• Large Coniferous forest
• Temperature fluctuations
• Fluctuations in Rainfall
• Zoological Characteristics:

• 28 families of land mammals

• Absence of large mammals

• Mammals includes:
• Moles, shrews, rabbits, hedgehogs, Squirrels, porcupines, hyaenas,
camels, donkeys, sheep, oxen, deer, bears, cats, and dogs.
 Shrew

Mole Hedgehog
Hyaena

Porcupine
• Two families of mammals unique to the Palaearctic region are both
from rodents:
1. Spalacidae:
one genus Exp: Spalax
• Brownish yellow
• Burrowing rat with no tail
• blind, fossorial,
• Also called Mole rates
• 2. Selevinidae:
Exp: Selevinia (desert dormouse)

• Mainly remarkable because it was discovered in 1938 in Kazhakstan.

• Length varies between 75 to 95 mm
• Robust, rounded body, soft dense fur.
• Nocturnal, hibernates in winters.
• Birds:
• Includes hawks, ducks, stork, Cuckoos, kingfisher, swifts, swallows,
blackbirds, finches etc.
• No parrots
• Birds that are only confined to this region: Hedge Hog Sparrow

• Reptiles:
• Turtles, tortoise, few lizards, and snakes
• There is an alligator in China
• No family is confined to this region
• Amphibians:
• Large number of tailed amphibians- the newts, and salamanders

Tailess amphibians such as toads and frogs are widespread, few tree
frogs of both Hylid and Polypedatid families are present
The vertebrate fauna of Palaearctic region is not very rich.
Cosmopolitan fauna:
➢Rabbits, bats, dogs, murids (largest family of rodents and of mammals)
➢Shrews, squirrels, mustelids are present in every region except Australian
➢Shared fauna:
➢Bears Nearctic, Neotropical, and Oriental
➢Deers

➢Bovids (Nearctic, Ethiopian, and Oriental)

➢Porcupine, and pigs (Ethiopian and Oriental)
➢Camel family -only mammalian family of Palaearctic region which has
discontinuous distributions
• 2. Oriental Region
➢Most of Asia
➢Tropical parts of India, Burma, Malaysia, Indonesia, Indo-China,
Southern-China, Sri-Lanka, Pakistan (excluding Baluchistan), and
Philippines.
• Physical features:
• It is separated from Palearctic region by Himalayan range from the
North side
• Other two sides (East and West) are bounded by Pacific and Indian
Oceans.
• Southern side is bounded by Malayan Island
• Northern part of India have grassy Plains with scattered trees and
bushes
• Northwest occupied by deserts
• Southern portion more rich in vegetation and covered with forests
• Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Indochinese regions almost
entirely covered with tropical forests and possess extremely rich
fauna
• Climate:
• Mainly Tropical
• Temperature of Southern part is constant and seldom higher than 30°C.
• Northern parts, in autumn and winter the temperature lies between 10-
20°C, rising in spring and summers.
• Zoological characteristics:
• Terrestrial vertebrates- 153 families
• 10 are unique and confined to this region
• Amongst mammals:
• Hylobatidae (gibbons)
• Tarsiidae (Tarsiers)
• Tupaiidae (Tree shrews)
• Galeopithecidae (flying lemurs)
Gibbon

Tarsiers

Treeshrews

Flying lemurs
• Bird families:
Only one family is endemic
• Eurylaemidae (broad bills)

• Reptiles:
• Elachistodontidae (egg eating snakes)
• Uropeltidae (shield tail snakes)
• Lanthanotidae (Lizards)
• Gavialidae (Gavials)
• Platysternidae (big headed tortoise) exp Poisonous snakes, wipers,
pithons, skinks, crocodiles.
• Mammals confined to Oriental region:
• Orangutan
• Monkeys
Sloth
• Indian elephant
• Rhinoceros
• Malayan tapirs
• Pandas
• Four horned antelopes
• Sloths
• Bears
• Anteaters

Anteaters
• Many different coloured birds are found in this region
• For exp: Bulbuls, bluebirds, Bee eaters, Pigeons, king fisher etc.
• Peacocks and Jungle fowls are native to this region.

• Reptiles:
• Are very well represented in this region
• Large number of poisonous Vipers, Cobras, Pythons.
• Lizards includes Geckos, and Skinks.
• Crocodiles are widespread. Exp Gavial (long-nosed crocodiles)
confined to India and Malaya.
• Freshwater turtle (big headed turtle) confined to this region.
• Number of turtles and tortoises present.
• Amphibians:
• Less distinctive.
• Common frogs and Toads range widely.
• Urodeles (tailed amphibians) are absent.
• Fishes:
• Freshwater fish fauns is rich
• Absence of primitive groups and dominance of Cyprinids
Affinities:
Resembles fauna of the Ethiopian region
But not so rich in endemic families nor exhibit a wide variety.
Shares Hedgehogs, porcupines, hyenas, Pigs with Palaearctic and
Ethiopian regions
Quarter of mammalian species exclusively shared with Africa exp: Apes,
Elephants, rhinoceros.

➢Considerable resemblance to Ethiopian fauna,

however unlike Ethiopian region, it has Moles, bears, tapirs and deers.
And doesn’t have Jerboas, wild horses like Ethiopian region
•3. Ethiopian region
Includes Southern part of Arabia, Madagascar (Mauritius, Comoro
island), Africa except of northern parts.
Physical and geographical features:
➢Bounded by all sides by sea
➢Except northern side which is continuous to Sahara desert that is
effective barrier between palaearctic region.
• Climatic conditions:
• Since most of Africa lies between the tropics
• Climate condition is much uniform
• Big rivers
• Mountains
• Grassy plains
• Thick tropical forests.
• Usually 20-30 °C during January.
• Zoological Characteristics:
• The fauna of Ethiopian region is very rich, varied and well marked.
• 161 families of terrestrial vertebrates.
• Higher mammals including Chimpanzees, monkeys, Giraffes, Bovids,
Antilopes, Zebras, lions, leopards, rhinoceros, elephants, Hyaenas etc.
• Lower mammals includes:
• Shrews, Cricetid mice, rabbits, mustelids, cats, dogs, squirrels, and
bovids.
 Endemic families

1. Hippopotamidae (Hippopotamus)

2. Orycteropidae (Aard Varks)

• 3. Chrysochloridae (golden moles)

4. Anomaluridae (flying squirrels)

• 5. Girrafidae (giraffe)

• 6. Potamagolidae (Otter Shrew)

• 7. Macroscelididae (elephant shrew)

• 8. Pedetidae (Spring hass)

• 9. Thyronomydae (cane rats)

• 10. Ctenodactylidae (Gundis)

• 11. Petromuridae (rock rats)

• 12. Bathyergidae (Sand burrowing rodent)
• Birds:
• Numerous in this region.
• Cukoos Hornbills

• Woodpeckers

Weaver birds
• Bee eaters
• Owls, Pheasants
• Pigeons
• Parrots,

Sun bird Guinea fowls

• Ostriches
• Six animals are unique to this region:
1. Ostriches 3. Hammer-heads

2. Secretary bird

4. Crested Touracos
• 5. Mousebirds

6. Helmet shrikes
• Reptiles:
• Rich, includes turtles, tortoise, crocodiles, monitor lizards, pythons,
vipers etc.
• 46 out of 50 species of chameolons present in this region

• Girdled lizard are peculiar to this region

• Amphibians:
• Less distinctive
• Frogs toads numerous
• Tailed amphibians and tree frogs are absent
• One family is endemic: Dactylethridae, Xenopus (clawed toads)
• Fish fauna is diverse
• Includes Primitive groups

• For exp (i) Polypterus

• (ii) Mormyrids
• Affinities:
• Ethiopian and Palaearctic region shares families of wild horses,
Dormice, Jerboas
• Doesn’t have moles, bears, and camels like palaearctic region

• With oriental region, the Ethiopian region shares eight mammalian

families
• Old world monkeys apes, bamboo rats, elephants, rhinoceros,
pangolins are confined to these regions.
• 2 apes species (Gorilla, chimpanzee) lives in Africa, while other two
(Orangutan and baboons) are found in oriental region.
• No mammal exclusively common with Nearctic and Neotropical

• In fishes, amphibian, and reptilian fauna the Ethiopian region

resembles both neotropical and Oriental region.
• In birds and mammalian fauna it has affinities with oriental region.
 4. Australian Region
• Includes, Australia, Tasmania, New guinea and few small islands of
Indonesian archipelago
• Climate:
• Partly tropical and partly temperate
• Unique region having no land connection to any other region
• New guinea and northern parts of Australia are tropical with high
summer temperature, covered with luxuriant tropical forests.
• Southern Australian is of temperate climate, forests with mixed hard
woods.
• Anterior Australian continents consists of hot, plains and deserts.
 Zoological characteristics of Australian region
Absence of higher placental mammals
Presence of primitive mammalian forms, such as Monotremes (egg laying mammals)
and Marsupials (Pouched mammals)
Among Birds: Cassowaries, emus, pigeons and bird of paradise

Cassowaries Emus Bird of Paradise

• Reptiles:

• Scale footed lizard

• Among aquatic animals: Neoceratodus (lung fishes)-Queensland lung

fish
• Fresh water mussel exp trigonia Mountain
shrimps
• Mountain shrimps
• Hence Australian region is often referred to as the “veritable museum
of archaic animals”
• Reason is because this region had prolong physical isolation which
provides refuges for its primitive forms, which prevented the higher
and more aggressive placental mammals from reaching this lone
continent

• Australian region has 134 families of terrestrial families.

• Out of which 30 are unique to this region
a) 8 of mammals
b) 17 of birds
c) 3 of reptiles
d) 2 of amphibians
• Total nine mammalian families are present: only 1 from this is
placental (murid mouse family)
• Other 8 families unique to this region are monotremes and
marsupials
• Mammalian families unique to Australian region
• Two families of monotremes
(i) Ducked-bill platypus (ii) Echidna
• Birds:
• Rich in bird fauna
• 10 families are unique to this region to Australian region: flightless
birds exp: Emus, Cassowaries, bird of Paradise, honey sucker etc.
• Parrots and pigeons exhibits great diversity
• Absence of Pheasants woodpeckers, and finches.
Reptiles:
• Only moderately varies
• 2 families endemic
• (i) Carettochelydidae (Fly-river turtles)
• (ii) Pygopodidae (scale footed lizard)
• 250 species of small lizards
• Among large lizards Komodo dragons

• Crocodiles occurs in tropical parts of this region

• Amphibians:
• Australia is the only region where common toads are absent
• Tailed amphibians are also absent

Common frogs and tree frogs are represented by 100 species

• Fishes:
• Freshwater fauna is poor
• Only 3 genera of Lung fishes are found is river of Queensland

•Affinities:
➢Australian region is characterized by presence of many primitive forms
➢Fauna is remarkable for poor for its freshwater fish, amphibians, and
reptiles, and for the uniqueness of its mammals.
➢Some fauna, like few frogs, turtles, and marsupials resemble
neotropical region.
➢Terrestrial reptiles, many birds, and placental mammals show affinities
with oriental region
➢Little in common with Ethiopian region