MesosuarusGlossopteris

Pangaea

German Scientist, Alfred Weneger was well known for his theory of the continents once being joined together, and forming one super continent. He called this idea, the “Pangaea theory.”But like all theories you need evidence to prove it. Alfred Weneger retrieved various pieces of evidence supporting his theory of one big super continent, from fossilized plants and animals, to deposits from an ancient ice age. Weneger also observed that different land forms, such as mountains, lined up with each other, even though they were on different continents.

Fossilized plants and animals of identical or from the same species, were found on different continents that are presently separated by wide expanses of water. This suggests that they must have lived on the same continent sometime in the past, as these plants and animals would not have been able to survive the journey across the ocean. Mesosaurus, a type of reptile, and Glossopteris, a species of plant, are examples of fossilized remains that have been found scattered across various continents. Scientists have found the fossilized remains of Mesosaurus and Glossopteris in South America, Australia, Africa, and Asia.

Mesosaurus

Glossopteris

Alfred Weneger noticed that South America and Africa seemed to fit together. So putting together the various continents, Alfred Wegener observed that the terrain on the different continents matched up with each other. The mountains that ran across South Africa from East to West, lined up with the mountains in Argentina. Another example of landforms matching up, are the Appalachian

(Apple- ation) mountains in the eastern United States lining up with the highlands in Scotland. Coal deposits and rock formations that were discovered in South Africa, were also found in Brazil.

Scientists have also made discoveries of striations resulting from glaciers coming from an ancient ice age. These striations were found on the coasts of South America, and South Africa. Scientists matched the striations and discovered that the patterns that were made, were the same. The South Pole is a very cold place, and Alfred Weneger discovered on his map of Pangaea that Africa, India, Australia, and Antarctica had once fit around it. On these same continents, deposits were left from glaciers that must have come from an ancient ice age.

Alfred Weneger also came up with the theory of continental drift. The pieces of Pangaea separating, and becoming individual continents. Alfred Weneger hypothesized that the continents were still moving or drifting, but he could not come up with enough evidence to prove his theory.