Folded Mountains and Seas：The Life Epic of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau

isaresearcheratthe the hasa Ph.D. in stratigraphy paleontology from Peking University.In recent years， hehasfocused onthe evolution Cenozoic fishes on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau.

The author follows a personal scientific expedition the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau integrates the arduous scientific expedition process，the desolate magnificent plateau wonders，the colorful customs， exciting fossil discoveries in this book.Added by the exquisite self-painted paleontological illustrations， the book tells the evolution legend various creatures such as the ichthyosaurs， climbing perch，ancient rhinoceros， three-toed horses on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau over the past 2O0 million years，presenting the epic life on the plateau.

FoldedMountainsSeas： TheLife Epic the QinghaiXizangPlateau

Wu Feixiang

China Science Technology

Press

January 2025

88.00 （CNY）

a giant jigsaw puzzle，with tectonic plates sliding undulating atop the searing，molten mantle. Drifting apart colliding again，they ceaselesslyreshapethedistribution l sea，remolding the face our planet.The mirrored coastlines across distant oceans， the colossal mountain ranges crisscrossingcontinentsall bearwitnesstotheirrelentless craftsmanship.

Around 3o0 million years ago， Gondwana beganto fracture.As a“porcelain platedropped from a height\"the supercontinent fragmented into lmasses varying sizes，drifting apart in differentdirectionsatdivergent speeds.Driven by mantle plume upwellingoceanicplate subduction （Note：some scholars posit that meteorite impacts may havealso contributed to the initial momentum），the Qiangtang Lhasa terranesatGondwana's northern margin，along with the lndiansubcontinent，raced northwardtoward Eurasia.Their collisionsultimately reshaped Asia's geography climate on acontinentalscale.Theripple effects these tectonic upheavals spread farwidewithinEarth's interconnected systems，reaching NorthAmericaAfrica.

This was an epic journey epochs， withcontinentalfragments travelingfromthesouthern hemisphere to the northern hemisphereoverhundreds millions years.Throughevershiftingenvironments，these lmassessailed like\"arks\" carryingpassengers from Earth's distantrealmstowhatwould

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ago），shortlyaftertheextinction non-avian dinosaurs，the Indian subcontinentmettheEurasian continent （theLhasa terrane） near 14^° north latitude.（ln 2021，some scientistsproposedan“IndiaAsia two-stage collision model\" suggesting thisinitial contact involved the Tethyan Himalayan terrane，a fragment rifted from the Indian subcontinent， colliding first withthe Asian continent.） As the continentsconverged collided， theyeventuallyforgedEarth's most majestic mountain system， the Himalayas， catalyzed the rise the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau， the\"Ro theWorld.\"This upheaval ultimately shaped China's fundamental geographical pattern： \"easternwaterswestern mountains\"Against the backdrop global cooling，thetwin forces marine regression mountainbuildingintensifiedaridityin CentralAsia'sGobideserts，while transforming the Yangtze River basin fromwindswept ssinto themisty，river-veined lscapes Jiangnan.

Life，ever-adapting to its environment，could not remain untouched by such monumental changes.The collision continent： marked not just the birth new mountains but also the opening biological corridors ripe With evolutionary opportunity. Scientists have discovered that faunal exchanges began almost immediatelywhen Indiafirst contactedEurasia.Over30million years later，despite the eastwest mountain barriers already spanning the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau，massive mammals like the Paraceratherium （giant rhinoceros） still migrated freely acrossitsnorthern southern reaches.Until the Early Miocene （around 20 million years ago）， when the plateau began to take shape，hornless rhinos still roamed the dense forests along northern Xizang's lakes.Even when the plateau reached a state similar to its current appearance， the highls in the periglacial environment were not completely \"isolated isls\"Some animals traversed itsdeep valleys，

mountain passesalongitsedges. Mostdramatically，duringthe Pleistocene Ice Ages，frigid climates united theplateau with the Arctic. Cold-adapted species like the woolly rhinoceros theancestors Arctic foxesemerged from Xizang to colonize the polar circle， becoming legends biogeography.

The Qinghai-Xizang Plateau isten hailed asa“natural laboratory\" forundersting life's evolution. Inthishuge“l(fā)aboratory\"the shifting seas continents， the connection lmasses， the risemountainsall serveas unique\"catalysts，driving biological succession dispersal. On the scale geological time， theplateau'stransformation，from oceanto l，from lowl to high-altituderealm，wasdramatic rapid，makingthetheater life here all the more spectacular.Next， let us journey across hundreds millionsyears retrace this extraordinary odyssey life.