Hurricanes and other major storms, however, carry sand both further offshore and onto the land where it can be permanently lost to the beach. Such large storms can also take beach sand along the shore to places where it will not return. As a result, big storms like hurricanes have the capacity to reduce and move our sandy barrier islands toward land. This is particularly noticeable in a period of rising sea level like the one we are in now.
The Florida peninsula is a porous plateau of karst limestone sitting atop bedrock known as the Florida Platform. The emergent portion of the platform was created during the Eocene to Oligocene as the Gulf Trough filled with silts, clays, and sands. Flora and fauna began appearing during the Miocene. No land animals were present in Florida prior to the Miocene
All the caribbean islands are becoming Florida front yards. The caribbeans get their land from S America:
The South American Plate is moving westwards due to sea floor spreading at the Mid Atlantic Ridge. Where it meets the Caribbean Plate, it descends (subducts) beneath it. This is because the oceanic lithosphere of the South American Plate is cooler and denser than that of the Caribbean Plate.
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