Galaxias and Gondwana

Abstract

Galaxiidae are present on nearly all former Gondwanan lands: Australia, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Patagonian South America, the Falkland Islands, southern Africa and various other small islands associated with these lands. However, it seems unlikely that this broad, apparently Gondwanan, range derives explicitly from vicariant processes relating to continental drift, plate tectonics and the fragmentation of Gondwana. Diadromy is widespread in the family, and widespread diadromous species, variously present on two or more of Australia, New Zealand, Patagonia and the Falklands, suggest that the faunas of these southern lands were strongly influenced by transoceanic dispersal, though contrary views are argued vigorously. Views relating to these dispersal origins date back the writings of Darwin in the late nineteenth century and were canvassed widely by other biogeographers, though some found the idea of dispersal unlikely, despite the widespread presence of diadromy in the fauna.