Land bridge

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Land bridge is essentially a historical term: it refers to dry land exposed during periods of low sea level (see regression), connecting what are now separate continents or islands. The best-known is the Bering land bridge, which connected Asia and North America during the last ice age, enabling humans to migrate to the Americas by walking. Another land bridge connected Great Britain to Europe at around the same time.

Land bridges generally occur on continental shelves: the Bering Strait, where the Bering Land Bridge was during the last glaciation, is part of the edge of the North American plate. For causes of sea level changes, see Sea_level_change.

In the railroad industry, a land bridge refers to moving containers by rail between ports on either side of a land mass, such as North America.