Origins of Diversity in the Eastern Gulf Coastal Plain of North America: High Endemism Within a Biodiversity Hotspot

The Eastern Gulf Coastal Plain (EGCP) is a small region within the North American Coastal Plain (NACP), a recognised biodiversity hotspot. The EGCP has been described as 'one of the most important hotspots of speciation and endemism' in the United States, yet remains an anomaly relative to other regions with high biodiversity and endemism. In contrast to most biodiversity hotspots, the EGCP is homogeneous in elevation, coastal and geologically young. We here provide a novel synthesis of the orig