The research questions explored by Earth scientists, though they may not initially seem directly relevant to ecological research, can ultimately yield valuable insights for the field of ecology. In this presentation, I will illustrate this with two examples. First, our investigation into the sulfur isotopic composition of rocks, and later bird feathers, not only provided insights into bird migration patterns but also helped identify the sulfur source in the part of the food chain. In this section, I will present the results of sulfur isotopic variability in the feathers of both resident and migratory birds in India. The latter part of the talk will focus on the biogeography of tree structures at the landscape scale in the Western Ghats. This research challenges the assumption that asymmetric heating—often responsible for vegetation distribution in mid-latitudes—does not apply in the Western Ghats due to its lower latitudinal position. The study emphasizes the significant role of the monsoonal climate and asymmetric solar heating in shaping tree structure in the region