PERIOD

A division of geologic history with spans of no

more than 100 million years.

CAMBRIAN
PERIOD

MESOZOIC ERA
PALEOZOIC ERA

CENOZOIC ERA
ORDOVICIAN
PERIOD PALEOGENE
TRIASSIC
PERIOD PERIOD
SILURIAN
PERIOD
JURASSIC NEOGENE
PERIOD PERIOD
DEVONIAN
PERIOD
CRATECEOUS QUATERNARY
PERIOD PERIOD
CARBONIFEROUS
PERIOD

PERMIAN
PERIOD

PALEOZOIC
PERIODS
1. Cambrian Period

o The Cambrian was a geological time period that took place between 541
and 485 million years ago before this time period life was small and simple
period life was small and simple animals were limited to things like jellyfish
worms and sponges however at the start of the Cambrian everything
began to change due to an event known as the Cambrian explosion. The
Cambrian explosion was a significant increase in the biodiversity of life this
event marked the arrival of new types of animals arguably the two most
significant were the arthropods and vertebrates during this competitive
time period arthropods were at the top of the food chain apabenia was a
strange predatory arthropod with five eyes and a strange proboscis that it
used to grab its prey that it used to grab its prey trilobites were armored
arthropods that became were armored arthropods that became one of
the most successful animals world anomalocaris was another predatory
arthropod that lived during the Cambrian for the time it was gigantic
growing to a size of 15 inches in length however in the midst of the
arthropod dominance a new type of creature appeared a new type of
creature appeared the vertebrates at the time they were just tiny fish those
tiny fish were destined to evolve into amphibians reptiles mammals and
birds changing life on earth forever the Cambrian ended with the
Cambrian Ordovician extinction many fish brachiopods and trilobites went
extinct a drop in oxygen levels may have been to blame, however life was
destined to recover and continue to diversify in the next time period.
2. Ordovician Period

o The Ordovician Period lasted almost 45 million years, beginning 488.3 million
years ago and ending 443.7 million years ago.
•Life

o Ordovician strata are characterized by numerous and diverse trilobites and

conodonts (phosphatic fossils with a tooth-like appearance) found in
sequences of shale, limestone, dolostone, and sandstone. In addition,
blastoids, bryozoans, corals, crinoids, as well as many kinds of brachiopods,
snails, clams, and cephalopods appeared for the first time in the geologic
record in tropical Ordovician environments. Remains of ostracoderms
(jawless, armored fish) from Ordovician rocks comprise some of the oldest
vertebrate fossils.
o Despite the appearance of coral fossils during this time, reef ecosystems
continued to be dominated by algae and sponges, and in some cases by
bryozoans. However, there apparently were also periods of complete reef
collapse due to global disturbances.
•Importance

o The Ordovician Period ushered in significant changes in plate tectonics,

climate, and biological systems. Rapid seafloor spreading at oceanic
ridges fostered some of the highest global sea levels in the Phanerozoic
Eon.
•Extinction

o Nearly 500 million years ago in the late Ordovician period, a mass extinction
wiped out 85% of marine species.
o Scientists have now used modelling to narrow down the cause of this
colossal loss of life - and they reckon it was due to a cooling climate.

3. Silurian Period

•Time Period
o Occurred from 443 million to 416 million years ago. And it is the shortest
period of Paleozoic era.
•In the Beginning
o The beginning of the Silurian Period has been accepted as a period of
regrouping.
o After the climax of the disastrous Ordovician Period, it was the Silurian Period
that is responsible for the evolution and change of the remaining species.
•Evolutionary Milestones: Evolution on the Land
o Many species were evolved during this Period.
o During this period, you can find the first appearance of fish with jaws.
o Also making an appearance in the Silurian Period is fish with a bone
structure, and first vertebrates.
o Small spiny sharks began to appear which became the oceans first
predators. And they are called Sea scorpion or Eurypterids, one of the
devastating predator in the Silurian Period.
 o The first plants appeared on land. These plants were mainly found in marshy
areas, grew low to the ground, and were absent of eaves. And they are
the vascular plants (which contain the xylem and phloem for transport food
and water). Where the xylem distributes water and dissolved minerals
upward through the plant, from the roots to the leaves. And the phloem
carries food downward from the leaves to the roots.
o Creepy-Crawlies began to appear on the land also. They were small,
measuring only a few centimeters long. These terrestrial pioneers were
arthropods, such as primitive centipedes and arachnid ancestors of spiders.
•Dominant Species
o Brachiopods - have an extensive fossil record, first appearing in rocks dating
back to the early part of the Cambrian Period. These are rare marine
animals with shells made of two halves.
•In the end
o The Silurian drew to a close with a series of extinction events linked to
climate change; however, they are relatively small compared to other
geologic periods.

4. Devonian Period

o Devonian Period: 419.2-358.9 million years ago (million years ago)

o The Devonian Period is sometimes called the “Age of Fishes” because of
the diverse, abundant, and, in some cases, bizarre types of these creatures
that swam Devonian seas.
o Forests and the coiled shell-bearing marine organisms known as ammonites
first appeared early in the Devonian. Late in the period the first four-legged
amphibians appeared, indicating the colonization of land by vertebrates.
o Two prominent groups were agnathans (jawless fish) and placoderms (the
first jawed fish).

5. Carboniferous Period

o The Carboniferous Period is a part of the Paleozoic Era. This geologic period
occurred in the later part of the era. It’s the longest period of the Paleozoic
Era, lasting 60 million years from around 358.9 million years ago till 298.9
million years ago.
o The Carboniferous Period is divided into two main subperiods (epochs)—
the Mississippian and Pennsylvanian epochs.
o Mississippian - Appearance of the first winged insects.
o Pennsylvanian - Appearance of reptiles, many ferns, and even
cockroaches.
o This period was named “Carboniferous,” meaning “coal-bearing,” due to
a large amount of coal deposited during this period, particularly
throughout Asia, Northern Europe, and Eastern and Midwestern North
America. Unsurprisingly, it’s the period when most of the coal on earth was
produced. The bark-bearing trees that grew in the lowland swamp forests
produced the coal.
o Because amphibians were the top species during the carboniferous period
so it is known as the Age of Amphibians.
o During the Carboniferous, earth’s continents started coming together to
form the Pangea supercontinent. The Gondwana and Euramerica land
 masses collided after moving toward one another for several million years
due to tectonic plate movements.
6. Permian Period

o Permian Period, Interval of geologic time, 298.9–252.2 million years ago. The
last of the six periods of the Paleozoic Era.
o The domination of amphibians. Permian amphibians were generally large,
such as the 5-6 ft. long Eryops.
o The world at the time was dominated by the supercontinent Pangaea,
which had formed due to the collision of Euramerica and Gondwana
during the Carboniferous. Pangaea was surrounded by the superocean
Panthalassa.
o The Permian (along with the Paleozoic) ended with the Permian–Triassic
extinction event, the largest mass extinction in Earth's history, in which nearly
81% of marine species and 70% of terrestrial species died out.

MESOZOIC
PERIODS

1. Triassic Period

o Popularly known as the “Age of Reptiles” because there is a good reason

for that because reptiles, and particularly dinosaurs were the dominant
land-dwelling vertebrate animals at the time.
o The Triassic period was the first period of the Mesozoic era that took place
roughly 252 million years ago and ended 201 million years ago. The
Permian-Triassic extinction event, also known as the Great Dying was one
of the most significant events in the history of our planet. The cause of the
Permian-Triassic extinction event is not fully understood. Various theories
have been proposed, such as an unknown asteroid impact and massive
volcanic eruptions. By some estimations, the Great Dying was responsible
for the extinction of up to 90% of all species.

2. Jurassic Period

o Jurassic Period: (201.3-145 million years ago)

o Golden Age of Dinosaurs
o During this period the supercontinent Pangea split apart, allowing for the
eventual development of what are now the central Atlantic Ocean and
the Gulf of Mexico.
o Reptiles were the dominant animal life forms during the Jurassic period.
Reptiles had overcome the evolutionary hurdles of support and
reproduction that limited the amphibians.
o It is known as when dinosaurs ruled the land, pterosaurs ruled the skies, and
reptiles ruled the seas.
o Mammals were also quietly evolving in the shadows waiting for their
opportunity. Early mammals were mostly very small herbivores or
insectivores and were not in competition with the larger reptiles.
3. Cretaceous Period

o The last and longest period of Mesozoic Era, the cretaceous period, The
Cretaceous Period began approximately 145 million years ago and ended
about 66 million years ago. The name Cretaceous is derived from creta,
Latin "chalk". Palynological evidence indicates that the cretaceous climate
had three broad phases: a Berriasian - Barremian warm-dry phase, a Aptian
- Santonian warm-wet phase, and a Campanian-Maastrichtian cool-dry
phase. Perhaps the most important of these events, at least for terrestrial
life, was the first appearance of the flowering plants, also called the
angiosperms or Anthophyta and many modern animals, including
placental mammal, first appeared on this period. The Cretaceous is
perhaps best known for the mass extinction event that exterminated the
dinosaurs and many other species, bringing the period, and the Mesozoic
Era, to a close.

CENOZOIC
PERIODS

1. Paleogene Period

o The first of the three periods on Cenozoic Era, the Paleogene Period it lasted
from 65 million to 23 million years ago. Paleogene is Greek meaning
"ancient born". The Paleogene period is when modern mammals started to
develop. The extinction of the large reptiles gave other animals the chance
to evolve. The latter part of the period was dominated by mammals.

2. Neogene Period

o Neogene period, The middle period of Cenozoic Era.

o Roughly began over 23 million years ago.
o The Neogene, which means “new born,” was designated as such to
emphasize that the marine and terrestrial fossils.
o The most significant event of the Neogene period was the evolution of
hominids and apes.
o The Neogene Period is the middle period of the three periods of the
Cenozoic Era.

3. Quaternary Period

o Third and the last period of Cenozoic Era.

o Quaternary period is the third and last of the three periods of the Cenozoic
Era.
o Roughly began over 2.58 million years ago.
o For the many cycles of glacial growth and retreat, the extinction of many
species of large mammals and birds, and the spread of humans.
o Quaternary period is the third and last of the three periods of the Cenozoic
Era.