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The oldest Homo sapiens fossils are almost 200,000 years old and come from southern Ethiopia (the Kibish Formation of the Omo River), considered the cradle of mankind (see Kibish Men). These fossil remains are followed in antiquity by those of Homo sapiens idaltu, about 160,000 years old. -
Scientific evidence indicates that hominids originated on the continent of Africa; the East African region is specifically indicated. Most hominin fossils, as well as the oldest ones, have been found throughout the African continent. -
Guide fossil: Numulites.
Geological events: Continental separation continues until the presents continents are formed, the formation of the Andes mountain range ends, the formation of the valley of Africa continues and Africa and India move north and the mountain ranges ofsouthern Europe emerges.
Climate events: Ice age and the last great ice ages acurred. -
The first fossils of angiosperms come from the Secondary era, the lower Cretaceous, so it is inferred that they must have appeared in the Triassic or Jurassic. These are pollen grains similar to those of gymnosperms and the remains of whole leaves and parallelinervias. -
The evolution of birds probably began during the Jurassic period, from coelurosaurus dinosaurs, which among other things share with the ornithic fauna the presence of feathers on their bodies and related bone characteristics. Also according to current scientific consensus, birds , crocodiles and close relatives, represent the only living members of a clade known as Archosauria. -
The first mammals appeared at the end of the Triassic, a little over 200 million years ago, but they remained in the shadow of the dinosaurs until they disappeared during the Cretaceous-Tertiary mass extinction, about 66 million years ago. -
Guide fossil: Ammonites.
Geological events: Fracturation of Pangea and possible impact of a large meteorite.
Climate events: Began a dry and warm trend during the Triassic. -
The first reptiles appear, such as the Ichthyostega. Basic reptiles such as the Cotylosaurus appeared more than 300 million years ago, in the late Carboniferous period of the Paleozoic era. During the next period, the Permian, they dominated the swamps and gave rise to the rest of the reptiles, including those that dominated the next era - the Mesozoic -
The first amphibians arose from a group of fish that possessed a primitive lung. -
they are a group of seed-producing plants that includes conifers, cycneys, Ginkgo and gnetophytes. Gymnosperms and angiosperms together make up sperm or plants with seeds. -
The age of the fish begins, fish without a jaw and later the cartilaginous fish and the bony ones emerged. -
The Cambrian explosion or Cambrian evolutionary radiation was the sudden appearance (from a geological point of view) and rapid diversification of complex multicellular macroscopic organisms at the beginning of the Cambrian period, 542/530 million years ago. This period marks an abrupt transition in the fossil record with the appearance of the most primitive members of many phyla of metazoans (multicellular animals). -
Guide fossil: Trilobites.
Geological events: Fracturing of Pannota, important mountain emerges in Europe and America and formation of Pangea.
Climate events: Ordovic glaciation and Carboniferous glaciation. -
The first life forms were stromatolites which are microbial reefs formed by the activity of cyanobacteria -
Appareance of life (cyanobacteria and oxygen appear) and animals of the fauna Ediacora. -
Guide fossil: Estromatolitos.
Geological events: The shaping of the Earth´s surface, formation of the supercontinent of Rodinia, formation of Pannotia and formation of the oceans.
Climate events: A great global glaciation beings, changeof reducing atmosphere to an oxidizing one.