In the context of global biogeography and plate tectonics, the landmass of peninsular India, including Kerala, drifted northward during the Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras after breaking away from which ancient supercontinent?

💡 Solution & Explanation

Peninsular India was part of the southern supercontinent Gondwanaland before rifting apart during the Cretaceous period and moving northward to collide with the Eurasian plate. Laurasia was the northern supercontinent comprising North America and Eurasia. Pangaea was the primordial supercontinent that split into Gondwanaland and Laurasia. Rodinia was an even older supercontinent predating Pangaea. This tectonic drift isolated the flora and fauna of the Western Ghats, fostering high rates of evolutionary endemism.