Flood Stories in Different Cultures

Flood stories in different cultures would be consistent either with a single great global flood or with a bunch of smaller local floods. Is there a way to tell which possibility the flood stories point to? There is, and it's by looking at where the stories crop up. Flood stories are almost entirely lacking in africa, occur only occasionally in europe, and are absent in many parts of asia. They are widespread in america, australia and the islands pacific.