Fig. 9: The Woodlark ridge, a potential biological cornerstone?.
From: Active hydrothermal vents in the Woodlark Basin may act as dispersing centres for hydrothermal fauna
Scenario of the Woodlark Ridge’s hypothesis as a cornerstone of the vent fauna dispersal in the western Pacific using the geotectonic reconstruction model of the Western back-arc basins adapted from Schellart et al. (2006)16. a Formation of the Solomon Basin and North Loyalty/South Fiji Basin with two independent ridge systems. b Opening of the northern branch of the North Fiji basin after the fossilization of the South Fiji basin and the opening of the Woodlark ridge about 10 Mya. c Expansion of North Fiji basin together with the opening of the Lau Basin 5 Mya. d Present-days back arc basins with the five hydrothermally active zones, including Futuna. Red dots: active spreading centres, black arrows: putative colonization routes, Is: species isolation phase, Sc: secondary contact, and Ex: population expansion phase.
