Environmental changes can lead to species extinctions. Beech trees are native to colder regions and do not do well in hot summer weather. Thus, they could've gone to extinction if South America had drifted south instead of west.
The movements of Earth’s continental and oceanic plates through time, with associated changes in climate and geographic connections, have affected the past and present distribution of organisms.
Evidence that South America and Africa might once have been joined to each other came from the research of the German geographer, Alexander von Humboldt.
Von Humboldt traveled throughout South America, Africa, and other parts of the world, collecting plant and animal specimens and studying geography and geology. He observed many similarities between South America and Africa in addition to the apparent fit of continental coastlines. - Read more at Encyclopedia.com.
G. Molengraff, a professor at the Institute Technology of Holland, argued that the mid-Atlantic Ridge marked the location from which Africa had drifted east and South America had drifted west.
Tip! Get information, facts, and pictures about beech (plant) at Britannica.com.