Pleistocene environmental fluctuations had well-characterized impacts on the patterns of within-species divergences and diversity in temperate habitats. Here the impact the Pleistocene had on widely distributed forest vertebrates in a tropical system where the distribution of the habitat was affected by those fluctuations is examined. A comparative phylogeographical analysis of 28 non-migratory, forest-dependent vertebrates was conducted, and compared them to hypothetical phylogenies based on independent geological data and climate models. Results suggest a dynamic history, including recurrent population extinctions and replacements and a strong priority effect for local populations. Evidences indicate that proximity was more important than the presence of palaeorivers for dispersal of forest taxa between landmasses. informacion[at]ebd.csic.es Leonard et al (2015) Phylogeography of vertebrates on the Sunda Shelf: a multi-species comparison. J Biogeogr DOI: 10.1111/jbi.12465