Geological Timeline

Precambrian: Begin 4.6 billion years ago

100

The Earth is created

Precambrian: Events

150

~The Earth is created 4.3 billion years ago
~Precambrian represents the bulk of Earth's history before Cambrian
~Precambrian covers nearly 90% of Earth's history
When the crust cooled, huge pieces of the crust began to move in different directions these pecies of crust are called tectonic plates

Precambrian: End 544 million years ago

200

The Precambrien Era ends.

Paleozoic: Begining 544 million years ago

200

The begining of the Paleozoic Era.

Cambrian: Begining 544 million years ago

200

The begining of Cambrian period.

Cambrian: Events

250

~The first geological time period of the Paleozoic Era
~It lasted about 53 million years
~Marked a dramatic burst of evolutionary changes in life on Earth, known as the "Cambrian Explosion”

Cambrian: End 505 million years ago

300

The Cambrian period ends.

Ordovician:Beginning 505 million years ago

300

Ordovician period begins.

Ordovician: Events

350

~Fairly warm climate
~Life still primarily under water but more animal forms
~Groups of algae evolved along the edges of the water
~Fungi and algae left on the bare land worked together to create lichen

Ordovician: End 438 million years ago

400

Ordovician period ends.

Silurian: Beginning 438 million years ago

400

Silurian period begins.

Silurian Events

450

~The warm shallow seas made good conditions for marine life to grow
~The species that survived the mass extinction at the end of the Ordovician Period spread out and developed new variations of life
~One of the survivors were the nautiloids

Silurian: Ending 408 million years ago

500

Silurian period ends.

Devonian: Beginning 408 million years ago

500

Devonian period begins.

Devonian: Events

550

~Laying close to the equator made the climate of the Devonian was warm
~The warm temperatures made life on land very good for plants
~The Devonian is known as the Age of Fishes because it is famous for the species of fish that developed in Devonian seas

Devonian: Ending 360 million years ago

Mar 23, 600

Devonian period ends.

Carboniferous: Beginning 360 million years ago

Mar 23, 600

The Carboniferous begins.

Carboniferous: Events

Mar 23, 650

~In the early Carboniferous Period, the Mississippian Epoch, much of North America was covered with warm and shallow seas
~In the middle through late Carboniferous Period, the land was rising out of the water
~The end of the Carboniferous Period is marked by global climate changes caused by glaciers that covered the South Pole

Carboniferous: Ending 286 million years ago

Mar 23, 700

Carboniferous period ends.

Permian: Beginning 286 million years ago

Mar 23, 700

Permian period begins.

Permian: Events

Mar 23, 750

~The Permian Period was the final period of the Paleozoic Era
~On land, the giant swamp forests of the Carboniferous began to evaporate and dry out
~Fossils of the shallower coastal waters around Pangaea’s continental shelf show that reefs were large and diverse ecosystems with numerous sponge and coral species

Cretaceous: Beginning 144 million years ago

Mar 23, 1000

Cretaceous period begins.

Jurassic: Ending 144 million years ago

Mar 23, 1000

Jurassic period ends.

Cretaceous: Events

Mar 23, 1050

~In Gondwana, South America and Africa broke apart because the ocean floor was spreading along a crack in the earth’s crust called a rift
~The rift between Africa and South America created a long chain of volcanic mountains underwater which grew as the Atlantic Ocean
~Animal life continued to develop much as it had in the Jurassic as new species of dinosaurs became important

Cretaceous: Ending 66.4 million years ago

Mar 23, 1100

Cretaceous period ends.

Tertiary: Beginning 66.4 million years ago

Mar 23, 1100

Tertiary period begins.

Mesozoic: End 66.4 million years ago

Mar 23, 1100

Mesozoic Era ends.

Cenozoic: Begin 66.4 million years ago

Mar 23, 1100

Cenozoic Era begins.

Tertiary: Events

Mar 23, 1150

~The beginning of this period was very warm and moist compared to today’s climate as much of the earth was tropical or sub-tropical and Palm trees grew as far north as Greenland
~During the Pliocene Period the first hominids appeared these were our human ancestors
~Birds did almost as well as mammals during the Tertiary Period and many of the birds we know today were present

Tertiary: Ending 1.6 million years ago

Mar 23, 1200

Tertiary Era ends.

Quaternary: Beginning 1.6 million years ago

Mar 23, 1200

Quaternary period begins.

Quaternary: Events

Mar 23, 1250

~Generally temperatures were cooler everywhere on earth during this time period
~During the Quaternary period the positions of the continents were very much the same as they are today
For us, the most important development of the Quaternary ~Period is the development of the hominids or Humans

Mesozoic: Begin 245 million years ago

Mar 2, 2022

Mesozoic Era begins.

Permian: Ending 245 million years ago

Mar 2, 2022

Triassic: Beginning 245 million years ago

Mar 2, 2022

Triassic period begins.

Triassic: Events

Mar 2, 2022

~Many species that survived the Permian Extinction died out during the early part of the Triassic like Trilobites, bryozoans, and rugose
~A completely new invertebrate species that developed in the Triassic was the Belemnite
~The most important development was happening to the reptiles. These animals would dominate the land, sea and air throughout the Mesozoic Era

Triassic: Ending 208 million years ago

Mar 2, 2022

Triassic period ends.

Jurassic: Beginning 208 million years ago

Mar 2, 2022

Jurassic period begins.

Jurassic: Events

Mar 2, 2022

~During the Jurassic Period, the supercontinent Pangaea split apart into two peices
~The climate in the Jurassic Period was warm and stable
~Many types of animals and plants developed in the Jurassic Period

Paleozoic: End 245 million years ago

Mar 2, 2022

Paleozoic period ends.