ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Seychelles Microcontinent

Okay kiddo, so there's this place called Seychelles, and it's a group of islands in the middle of the ocean. But did you know that scientists think that a long, long time ago, there was actually a bigger piece of land there that was separate from the other continents? That bigger land is called the Seychelles microcontinent!

Imagine that Seychelles is a little puzzle piece, and the Seychelles microcontinent is a bigger puzzle piece that used to fit next to Seychelles. But over a super long time, it moved away from the other continents and became its own tiny continent.

It's kind of like how you have a toy car that's part of a set, but then you move it to play with it separately. The Seychelles microcontinent was once part of a group of continents, but now it's on its own!

Scientists are really interested in the Seychelles microcontinent because it has a unique and diverse ecosystem with plants and animals that you can't find anywhere else in the world. So even though it's small, it's really important!