The Epochs Paleocene Eocene Oligocene Miocene Pliocene Holocene

The Epochs Paleocene Eocene Oligocene Miocene Pliocene Holocene

Paleocene A geologic epoch that lasted from 66 to 56 million years ago Is the first epoch in the cenozoic era Started with a mass extinction at the end of the cretaceous period

http: //www. theonion. com/graphic/tim eline-mass-extinction-50749 Mass Extinction The Cenozoic Era started with the mass extinction of the dinosaurs at the end of the cretaceous period. The Paleocene Era began with the death of the dinosaurs and a fast increase in mammal evolution

http: //www. paleocene-mammals. de/primates. htm Paleocene species Paleocene life forms were mostly highly specialized because they evolved to fill the niches that had been left open during the last extinction and due to the wide spread of oceans marine life thrived. Late in the Paleocene mammals evolution showed a trend toward larger life forms.

Paleocene Climate The early paleocene climate was cooler than the cretaceous period. Then the climate became warm and humid worldwide with subtropical vegetation growing in Greenland Patagonia. http: //paleogeneidaho. weebly. com/

Flora Their was a spike in fern fossils at the beginning of the paleocene era. Ferns are often the first species to colonize areas damaged by forest fires so the fern spike may indicate that the extinction was caused by fire so volcanoes or a meteorite are likely suspects. http: //paleogeneidaho. weebly. com/

Geologic records During the Paleocene epoch the continents continued to drift toward their present positions and the supercontinent Laurasia had not separated. During the paleocene epoch Europe and Greenland were still connected and North America and Asia were still joined by a land bridge. The Rocky Moutains continued to uplift in America https: //www. geol. umd. edu/~tholtz/G 102/102 ceno 1. htm

Eocene The eocene epoch lasted from 56 to 33. 9 million years ago The second epoch in the Cenozoic era At about the beginning of the Eocene Epoch the amount of oxygen in the earth's atmosphere about doubled what it is today. The Eocene in North America was marked by the flooding of the Great Valley and a portion of the Atlantic and Gulf coastal plain extending from New Jersey to Texas

Eocene Species Hoofed animals first appeared like the Eohippus and the rhinoceroses and tapirs. Bats, rabbits, beavers, rats, mice, carnivorous mammals, and whales also evolved during this time. The earliest Eocene Epoch mammals were all small but larger species evolved toward the end of the eocene epoch. https: //ferrebeekeeper. wordpress. com/2014/07/10/ adorable-mammals-from-the-eocene/

https: //skepticalscience. com/climate-change-little-iceage-medieval-warm-period. htm Eocene Climate The Eocene Epoch contained a wide variety of different climate conditions. During part of the eocene epoch little to no ice was present on Earth with a smaller difference in temperature from the equator to the poles. Following the maximum was a descent into an icehouse climate. During this decrease ice began to reappear at the poles, and the transition is the period of time where the Antarctic ice sheet began to rapidly expand

Eocene Flora At the beginning of the Eocene, the high temperatures and warm oceans created a moist, balmy environment, with forests spreading throughout the Earth from pole to pole. https: //www. scientificamerican. com/gallery/earlybloomer-ancient-sunflower-fossil-colors-picture-ofeocene-flora/

Geologic records In the middle of the Eocene epoch the separation of Antarctica and Australia created a deep water passage between those two continents which created the Antarctic Current. This changed oceanic circulation patterns and global heat transport resulting in a global cooling event observed at the end of the Eocene.

Oligocene The start of the Oligocene is marked by a notable extinction event called the Grande Coupure. Major changes during the Oligocene included a global expansion of grasslands while tropical broadleaf forests lessened to closer to the equator.

Oligocene Species Even more open landscapes allowed animals to grow to larger sizes than they had earlier. Marine animals became fairly modern as did terrestrial mammals on the northern continents. Many groups became more able to run during this time adapting to the plains that were spreading as the Eocene rainforests receded. http: //palaeos. com/cenozoic/oligocene. htm

https: //prezi. com/9 tcozho 3 bwcp/miocene-and-pliocene -epochs/ Oligocene Climate The oligocene the icehouse climate continued with temperatures decreasing 8. 2 degrees celsius about every four thousand years with the ice caps on the poles increasing.

Oligocene Flora The shrinking of forests continued from the end of the eocene epoch and it was predominantly grasslands with broad leafed tropical plants confined to close to the equator

Geologic Records The Oligocene sees the beginnings of modern ocean circulation with tectonic shifts causing the opening and closing of ocean gateways. Cooling of the oceans was already in happening during the eocene and the oceans continued to cool as the Oligocene continued. The formation of permanent Antarctic ice sheets during the early Oligocene helped speed up the oceanic cooling

Miocene The Miocene happened at about 23. 03 to 5. 333 million years ago and was when apes started diversifying into our ancestors.

https: //sites. google. com/a/myhalifax. us/geologic-timescale-project-2015 -16/miocene Miocene Species The Miocene Epoch was mostly supported by the kelp forest biomes and grassland biomes. This allowed for more grazers like horses rhinoceroses and hippos. Miocene species were fairly modern with many reconizable species we have today like owls and snakes became prominent in north america.

Miocene Climate The Miocene began warming 21 million years ago and continued until 14 million years ago when global temperatures took a sharp drop and the Antarctic ice sheet was approaching its present-day size and thickness.

http: //keywordsuggest. org/gallery/474280. html Miocene Flora Ninety-Five percent of today's modern plants were alive at this time and we see large herds of grazers followed by predators

Geologic Records Antarctic ice kept building up which caused the oceans to cool even more and ice caps were becoming large.

Pliocene The Pliocene Epoch is the epoch in the geologic timescale that extends from 5. 333 million to 2. 58 million years. It is the second youngest epoch in the Cenozoic Era.

http: //hoopermuseum. earthsci. carleton. ca/evolution/equ idae/pliocene. html Pliocene Species Africa was dominated by hoofed animals and primates continued their evolution in the Pliocene. Rodents were successful and elephant populations increased. Cows and antelopes continued diversification. Early giraffes appeared and Horses and modern rhinos evolved.

https: //www. emaze. com/@AFROOOQI/Presentation- Pliocene Climate The global average temperature in the mid-Pliocene was 2– 3 °C higher than today and carbon dioxide levels were the same as today while global sea levels were about 25 m higher

Pliocene Flora Coniferous forests and tundra covered much of the north and grasslands spread on all continents except Antarctica. Tropical forests were limited to a tight band around the equator and in addition to dry savannahs deserts appeared in Asia and Africa

Geologic Records The Arctic ice cap formed fully drying the climate and increasing cool shallow currents in the North Atlantic while deep cold currents flowed from the Antarctic.

Holocene The Holocene is the geological epoch that began after the Pleistocene at approximately 11, 700 years before present

Geologic records Ice melt caused world sea levels to rise about 115 ft in the early part of the Holocene. The sea level rise and temporary land depression allowed temporary marine incursions into areas that are now far from the sea.