Question

Marsupials are found in North America and Australia, but they would not have been able to swim across the ocean. According to scientists, how did this group of organisms come to live on two separate continents?
Marsupials used to have adaptations that allowed them to swim but lost these adaptations over time.
The two groups of marsupials evolved independently of one another on two separate continents.
The continents were once connected, and marsupials were able to migrate over the land.

Answer 1

The third option is correct: the continents were once connected, and marsupials migrated across land. Plate tectonics and fossil evidence show marsupial ancestors spread across connected southern continents (Gondwana — including South America, Antarctica, and Australia) before they separated, then evolved separately after isolation.