Wallacea
The biogeographical designation Wallacea applies to a relatively isolated transition zone between the Sunda Shelf (the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Borneo, Java, and Bali) to the west and the Sahul Shelf (Australia and New Guinea. It is one of the world's most biologically diverse regions where highly endemic fauna have evolved in relative isolation. Nearly 50% of the flora and fauna found in Wallacea are unique to the region.
The group includes the large islands of Sulawesi, Lombok, Sumbawa, Flores, Sumba, Timor, Halmahera, Buru, Seram, and many smaller islands, including the Malukus. The Philippines are generally seen as lying outside Wallacea.
The region, and its western boundary (the Wallace Line, separating Wallacea from the Sunda Shelf) owe their name to the pioneering work of Alfred Russel Wallace, who recorded the differences between fauna on either side of the line. To the west of the line, in Sundaland (Sumatra, Java, Bali, and Borneo), the mammal fauna originate from Asia, with tigers, rhinoceros, and apes that moved into the area during the ice ages when sea levels were lower. The side of the line from Lombok eastwards, separated by deep water between the continental shelves, has marsupials and birds similar to those found in Australasia, in a mix of species of Asian and Australian descent.
Links:
Alfred Russel Wallace: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alfred-Russel-Wallace
Buru: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buru
Flores: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flores
Halmahera: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halmahera
Lombok: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lombok
Lydekker Line:
Sahul Shelf: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sahul_Shelf
Seram: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seram_Island
Sulawesi: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sulawesi
Sumba: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumba
Sumbawa: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumbawa
Sunda Shelf: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunda_Shelf
Sundaland: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundaland
Timor: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timor
Wallace Line: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallace_Line
Weber Line: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Carl_Wilhelm_Weber
