PREHISTORIC EARTH

The changing Earth

THE EARTH FORMED FROM A CLOUD OF DUST and gas drifting Small mammals
through space about 4.6 billion years ago. Dense minerals sank to appeared (e.g.,
Crusafontia)
the center while lighter ones formed a thin rocky crust. However, Dinosaurs
the first known life-forms—bacteria and blue-green algae—did became
not appear until about 3.4 billion years ago, and it was only about extinct
700 million years ago that more complex plants and animals
began to develop. Since then, thousands of animal and Global
plant species have evolved; some, such as the dinosaurs, mountain
US
survived for many millions of years, while others died building
A CEO
occurred ET
out quickly. The Earth itself is continually changing. CR
Although continents neared their present locations
about 50 million years ago, they are still drifting Multicellular soft-
slowly over the planet’s surface, and mountain bodied animals
appeared (e.g.,
ranges such as the Himalayas—which began to worms and
form 40 million years ago—are continually jellyfish)
being built up and worn away. Climate is also
subject to change: the Earth has undergone Shelled
a series of ice ages interspersed with invertebrates
warmer periods (the most recent appeared (e.g.,
trilobites)
glacial period was at its height
about 20,000 years ago). Marine plants
flourished

N CAMBRIAN PRECAMBR
O VICIA IAN T
Land plants
O RD IM E
appeared
(e.g., Cooksonia)

Unicellular
organisms appeared DEVONIAN
SILURIAN
(e.g., blue-green
algae)

Amphibians
More complex appeared (e.g.,
Earth types of algae Ichthyostega)
formed Vertebrates appeared
Coral reefs appeared (e.g.,
appeared Hemicyclaspis)

GEOLOGICAL TIMESCALE
MILLIONS OF
YEARS AGO (MYA)

4,600 570 510 439 409 363 323 290

MISSISSIPPIAN PENNSYLVANIAN
(NORTH AMERICA) (NORTH AMERICA)

CAMBRIAN ORDOVICIAN SILURIAN DEVONIAN CARBONIFEROUS

PRECAMBRIAN TIME PALEOZOIC

56
 THE CHANGING EARTH

EVOLUTION OF THE EARTH

Birds appeared
(e.g., Archaeopteryx)
Dinosaurs
flourished

Marine reptiles
appeared (e.g.,
Mixosaurus)

JURASSIC
TR
IAS
SIC
Flowering plants Oil and gas
appeared (e.g., deposits formed
Magnolia)

Himalayas
began to form Coal-forming
forests flourished
Large mammals
appeared (e.g.,
Arsinoitherium)

N
M IA
P ER Early
desertification
occurred

Conifers
appeared

TE
RT
IAR Last glacial
US Y period occurred
NIFERO
CARBO

Colorado River
began to cut out
the Grand Canyon

QU
Uplift of the AT Modern humans
Sierra Nevada ER (Homo sapiens)
NA
began RY appeared

65 56.5 35.5 23.5 5.2 1.64 0.01 0 MYA

PLEISTOCENE
OLIGOCENE
PALEOCENE

HOLOCENE
PLIOCENE
MIOCENE
EOCENE

290 250 200 145

EPOCH

PERMIAN TRIASSIC JURASSIC CRETACEOUS TERTIARY QUATERNARY PERIOD

MESOZOIC CENOZOIC ERA

57