BIOGEOGRAPHY OF SOUTH AMERICAN MASTODONS (GOMPHOTHERIIDAE, MAMMALIA)
The uplift of the Panama Isthmus allowed species from the North American megafauna to migrate to the South America, including two species of mastodons: Cuvieronius hyodon and Notiomastodon platensis. Two routes for the dispersion of those species across the South American continent are proposed according to the climatic preferences of each mastodon. The inference of the trends of expansion and retraction of areas of suitability is possible by paleoclimate models of the Last Interglacial (LIG -120ka), Last Glacial Maximum (LGM - 22ka), and Middle Holocene (8ka). The extinctions of those species have been related to climatic changes and/or interactions with the first human populations. The implementation of environmental suitability models can help to evaluate the climatic hypothesis for the extinction of those species.