Geologic Time Scale

What is the age of the Earth?

-The Earth is 4.6 billion years old.
-Life on Earth arose around 3.5 billion years old
-Over Earth’s vast history, both gradual and catastrophic processes have produced enormous changes.
MACROEVOLUTION
-The evolution of whole taxonomic groups over long periods of time.
-“Major Evolutionary Change”
-This includes the creation of biological diversity through speciation but also encompasses different evidences of life from the different geologic time scales.
 The Geological time scale is a record of the life forms and geological events in Earth’s history.
 Scientists developed the time scale by studying rock layers and fossils worldwide.
 Radioactive dating helped determine the absolute divisions in the time scale.
MISCONCEPTIONS:
 Humans and dinosaurs existed on the Earth at the same time.
 Plant and animals on Earth have always existed.
 The Earth is too big to change.
TERMS:
o EON – largest division of the geologic time scale; spans hundreds to thousands of millions of years ago.
o ERA – division in an Era that span time periods of tens to tens to hundreds of millions of years.
o PERIOD – a division of geologic history that spans no more than one hundred million years.
o EPOCH – the smallest division of the geologic time scale characterized by distinctive organisms.
GTS:
A. Four Eras – Precambrian, Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic
B. Periods under the Paleozoic- Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, Permian
C. Four Eras – Precambrian, Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic
D. Periods under the Paleozoic- Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, Permian
1 SUPER EON AND 4 ERAS:
 PreCambrian Super Eon – 88% of Earth’s history
 Paleozoic (ancient life) - 544 million years ago… lasted 300 million years.
 Mesozoic (middle life) – 245 million years ago… lasted 180 million years.
 Cenozoic (recent life) – 65 million years ago… continues through the present.
PRECAMBRIAN EONS
 Most ancient Eon – it covers approximately 88% of Earth’s History.
 “Origin of Earth” – it is the point at which Earth began to form
 This time division is also called Cryptozoic Era sometimes called the eon of “hidden life” due to lack of records showing life.
 Erosion has destroyed most of the rocks and fossils. Any fossils that survived are rare and simple in structure
 In the latter part of the Precambrian eons, single-celled and simple multicellular organisms first developed.
 There are many fossils from this time because the sea-dwelling creatures were trapped in sediments and preserved.
HADEAN EON
 4.6 billion years ago to roughly 3.8 billion years ago
 From “Haedes”, Greek god of the underworld
 “Hell-like” Chaotic time because of several meteorite bombardment
 Lots of volcanic activity and eruptions/; existence of protocontinents
ARCHEAN EON
 3.8-2.5 billion years ago
 The planet begun to cool and water vapor condenses to form rain.
 The atmosphere is made up of methane gas, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide but no free oxygen gas.
 Stromatolites existed and other bacterial cells.
 Life forms are limited to single celled organisms.
*Stromatolites are layered sedimentary formations that are created by photosynthetic cyanobacteria.
PROTEROZOIC EON
 2.5 billion years ago to 542 million years ago
 An eon that spans for three eras; namely Paleoproterozoic, Mesoproterozoic and Neoproterozoic.
 Massive and rapid continental accretion.
 Atmosphere enriches with oxygen due to bacteria.
 Herbivorous eukaryotes (algae)
 Extensive glaciations during “snowball earth”
 Rise of multicellular organisms represented by the Vendian faun.
 Formation of the protective ozone layer.
PHANEROZOIC EON
- The most recent eon
- Eon or “ Visible life”
- Greatest diversity of land and ocean organisms.
- Fossil record indicates complex organisms thrive.
- We are still currently living in the Phanerozoic.
The Phanerozoic eon is subdivided into three eras – the Paleozoic Era, Mesozoic Era, and Cenozoic Era.
Paleozoic Era
o called “Age of the Ancient life”
o Among the three eras of the Phanerozoic eon, the Paleozoic era is the longest and diverse, it takes almost half of the Phanerozoic eons.
o It started 300 million years ago.
o 3 distinct “ages”
- Age of invertebrates
 - Age of fishes (vertebrates)
- Age of Amphibians
The Paleozoic era is divided into 6 major periods.
1. Cambrian
2. Ordovician
3. Silurian
4. Devonian
5. Carboniferous
6. Permian
CAMBRIAN PERIOD
 550-500 million years ago
 Following the Precambrian mass extinction there was an explosion of new organisms in the Cambrian period.
 Variety of marine organisms came into existence
 Sponges, snails, clams and worms evolve by having the ability to form shells through the secretion of calcium carbonate and calcium phosphate.
 “Age of Invertebrates” were the trilobites were very abundant.
ORDOVICIAN PERIOD
 500-450 million years ago
 The oceans are filled with invertebrate animals
 Plants dominate the land while most of the animals remained in the water
 The first fish evolved
 Marks the earliest appearance of the jawless fish known as the AGNATHA.
SILURIAN PERIOD
o 450-400 million years ago
o In the ocean corals appear and fish continuous to evolved
o On land vascular plants evolve and they grow bigger than the existing non-vascular plants. They developed specialized tissues use by the plants to
distribute water and other materials.
o This period brought about the emergence of terrestrial life.
o Some of the common organisms during this period are the air-breathing scorpions and millipedes.
DEVONIAN PERIOD
o 400-350 million years ago
o This period is known as the “age of fishes”.
o The first seed plant evolved. Seed plants have a protective seed coat and stored food in their cotyledon to survive. Eventually, plants that bears
seeds become the most common type of plants in land.
o Fish with lobe fins evolved. They could breath-in air out from water.
o Cartilaginous fish such as sharks and rays were common by the late Devonian.
CARBONIFEROUS PERIOD
o 350-300 million years ago
o Widespread forest of large plants left massive deposits of carbon that eventually turned into coal and crude oil.
o First amphibian evolve and lived in water and land.
o First reptile evolved. They were the first animals that can reproduce on dry land.
o The climate during this period was described to be tropical and humid.
PERMIAN PERIOD
o 300-250 million years ago and was the last period of Paleozoic Era
o All the major land masses collided to form the supercontinent “Pangea”
o Temperatures were extreme and the climate was dry.
o “Greatest Mass Extinction of All Time”
o The largest extinction in Earth’s history-far more devastating than the more famous Cretaceous extinction when dinosaurs disappeared- marks the
end of the Permian
MESOZOIC ERA
o “Middle life” era
o Rise of dinosaurs
o The period, which spans from about 252 million years ago to about 66 million years ago, was also known as the age of reptiles or the age of
dinosaurs.
o Life diversified rapidly and giant reptiles, dinosaurs and other monstrous beasts roamed the Earth.
o This period also marks the rapid spread of true pines and redwoods.
o The appearance of flowering plants during this period hastens the evolution of insects.
It is divided into three major periods namely;
1. Triassic
2. Jurassic
3. Cretaceous
Triassic Period
o 250-200 million years ago
o The first dinosaurs branched off from the reptiles and they colonized the land, water, and air.
o Huge seed ferns and conifers dominated the forest.
o Modern corals, fish, and insects evolved.
o Pangea started to separate into Laurasia.
JURASSIC PERIOD
 This period also marks the rapid spread of true pines and redwoods. The appearance of flowering plants during this period hastens the evolution of
insects.
 200-150 million years ago
 This is the golden age of the dinosaurs, whereas the dinosaurs’ species flourish.
 The earliest bird evolved form reptile ancestors.
 Major group of mammals evolved while individual mammals remains small in size.
  Flowering plants appear and new insects evolved to pollinate the flowers.
CRETACEOUS PERIOD
 150-65 million years ago
 Dinosaurs reach their peak and distributions.
 The continent was close to the current position as they are right now. Earth’s climate is warm and poles lacked ice caps.
 Extinction of dinosaurs.
CENOZOIC ERA
 “Rise of mammals”
 “Age of recent life”
 Also sometimes called the “age of flowering plants” because angiosperms replaced gymnosperms as the dominant land plants.
 Represents more than 2% of Earth’s history
 We are now at Holocene
 Has the fossils of the organisms which were able to survive and adapt after the Cretaceous–Tertiary extinction (K/T Extinction)
Two periods of the Cenozoic Era:
1. Quarternary
2. Tertiary
TERTIARY PERIOD
 65- 0.01 million years ago
o Climate is warm and humid
o Mammals evolved to fill virtually all niches vacated by dinosaurs. Many mammals increased in size.
o Mammals called primates evolved, including human ancestors.
o Modern rain forests and grasslands appeared, and flowering plants and insects were numerous and widespread.
Pliocene 5 - 2 million years ago
Miocene 25 – 5 million years ago
Oligocene 35 – 25 million years ago
Eocene 55 – 35 million years ago
Paleocene 65 – 55 million years ago
QUARTERNARY PERIOD
 2 million years ago - present
o Climate is cooled leading to a series of ice age
o Sea water level lowered resulting to the formation of land bridges between continents that enabled land animal migration.
o Some mammals, like the woolly mammoths adapted to the cold by evolving very large size and thick fur. Other animals moved closer to the
equator or went extinct, along with many plants.
o Homo sapiens evolved
o First primates appear and flowering plants become the most common
Halocene (present) 0.01 million years ago - present
Pleistocene 2 – 0.01 million years ago