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Why did lower sea levels expose the land route called Beringia?

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A group of Native American men in colorful traditional regalia with feathered headdresses dance outdoors at a powwow ceremony on a grassy field. — Indigenous peoples of the Americas Performers at a Canadian powwow, c. 2008.

The land route known as Beringia was exposed because of the massive accumulation of water in glaciers during the Pleistocene Epoch, particularly during the last glacial maximum.

As vast quantities of Earth’s water became locked in ice sheets, global sea levels dropped significantly—by as much as 400 feet (120 meters) in some estimates. This dramatic reduction in sea level caused large portions of the world's continental shelves to emerge as dry land.123

In the region between northeastern Asia and northwestern North America, this exposed seafloor created a land bridge that connected Siberia to Alaska. This dryland corridor remained accessible for thousands of years, providing a route for plants, animals, and, according to widely held theories, early human ancestors to migrate into the Americas. As the climate warmed and glaciers melted, the rising sea levels eventually submerged this land, severing the connection.132