Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

Lesson 3.2

Life during Precambrian and Paleozoic Period

Contents

Introduction 1

Learning Objectives 2

Warm Up 2

Learn about It! 4

Earth’s Condition During Precambrian and Paleozoic Eras 4
Precambrian Era 4
Paleozoic Era 7
Life Forms During Precambrian and Paleozoic Eras 8
Precambrian Era 8
Paleozoic Era 10

Key Points 14

Check Your Understanding 15

Challenge Yourself 17

Photo Credits 17

Bibliography 17
Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

Lesson 3.2

Life during Precambrian and

Paleozoic Period

Introduction
Do you have any idea what Earth looked like in early times? Based on movies, it is depicted
to have unfavorable atmospheric conditions that would not allow any life forms to exist. At
the same time, it has been described to have a lot of active volcanoes that erupt from time
to time which maintain a constant lava flow on Earth’s surface.

In this lesson, Earth’s conditions during its earliest time period, namely: the Precambrian
and the Paleozoic periods will be described. These periods mainly span from Earth’s
formation about 4.6 billion years ago until the Cambrian Period, which was approximately
541 million years ago. Students are expected to validate the common idea regarding Earth’s
condition together with the life forms that may possibly exist during this time as depicted
by most movies.

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

Learning Objectives DepEd Competency

In this lesson, you should be able to do the Describe general features of the
history of life on Earth, including
following:
generally accepted dates and
● Describe Earth’s conditions during the sequence of the geologic time scale
Precambrian and Paleozoic eras. and characteristics of major groups of
● Enumerate possible life forms organisms present during these time
periods (STEM_BIO11/12-IIIc-g-8).
present during the Precambrian and
Paleozoic eras.

Warm Up

The Precambrian Story 15 minutes

WIth your existing ideas regarding the primitive conditions of Earth, you are expected to
create a storyboard to describe what Earth looked like during its early times.

Materials
● coloring materials
● illustration board
● gadget with an internet connection
● pencil

Procedure
1. Group yourselves into five members.
2. Do a group brainstorming regarding your idea of the primitive Earth. Discuss how
you think Earth’s surface looked like in early times. You may watch videos or search
for further information on the web for your reference.

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

3. After the given time to discuss, make a storyboard of your idea based on your
discussion.
4. Use Fig. 3.2.1. as an example of the expected output of this activity. Take note that
the storyboard must cover the Precambrian and Paleozoic periods.

Fig. 3.2.1. Sample storyboard

5. After making your storyboard, pick one representative of your group to present your
output in class.
6. Answer the guide questions below.

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

Guide Questions
1. What do you think did Earth look like during its early ages?
2. Based on the descriptions presented in class, do you think it is possible for life forms
to exist during this period of time?
3. What kind of organisms can possibly thrive in the condition described during the
storyboard presentation? Explain your answer.

Learn about It!

Earth’s Condition During Precambrian and Paleozoic Eras

What do you think did Earth look like

during its early ages?

Precambrian Era
In understanding the primitive
condition of Earth during the
Precambrian period, little is known
even if it covers a large portion of
Earth’s history. The Precambrian Era is
a predated era prior to the emergence
of life during the Cambrian Period. It
has three major subdivisions: Hadean,
Archean (also spelled Archaean), and
Proterozoic. Today, it is known that
life on Earth started during the early
Archean, thus making the presence of
fossilized organisms increase
throughout the Precambrian time period.
The geologic time scale can be seen in
Fig. 3.2.2.

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

The Hadean era started

with the actual formation of
Earth from materials such
as dust and gas that orbited
around Sun about 4.6 billion
years ago. Within this era,
Earth’s surface was possibly
in the form of liquid rock
and boiling sulfur that built
an ocean of hot materials.
Scientists also hypothesize
that volcanoes constantly
erupted together with the blasting of rocks and asteroids from space. The atmosphere
during this did not exist, instead, the air formed a thick and steamy layer of dust and crud.
The sky was mostly filled with carbon dioxide, water vapor, nitrogen, and sulfur compounds.
As of today, there are still no fossilized rocks found from this era.

The Archean era began about 1 billion years after the formation of Earth. During this
period, Earth mostly cooled down and the water vapor from the air condensed and formed
the global ocean. The abundant carbon dioxide in the air chemically changed and formed
limestones that were deposited at the bottom of the ocean. The atmosphere started to form
and was mostly composed of nitrogen. The melted rocks cooled down and formed the
ocean floor. However, Earth’s interior was still hot and active. This caused a series of
volcanic eruptions and formed long chains of small islands. The continents still have not
formed at this time. Small landmasses were present, however, and were formed through
the movement of rock deep in Earth's interior towards the surface.

In some instances, small islands collided and formed larger islands. This eventually created
the continental cores. The map in Fig. 3.2.3. shows the probable locations of Archean rocks
that probably formed the early continental cores or cratons. Cratons are large areas of the
continental lithosphere that were formed as early as Precambrian.

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

Fig. 3.2.3 The location of the Archaean cratons

The Proterozoic era refers to a time on

Earth which was about 700 million years ago.
It started about two billion years after Earth
was formed. During this time, Earth was
suspected to have two supercontinents: one
was located in the equator while the other
one was situated on the other side. These
supercontinents were formed through the
collision of many islands from the Archean
and Proterozoic eras. During this time,
Earth's interior continuously cooled down
and fewer volcanoes were active. Plate
tectonics, or the movement of Earth’s
landmasses, was still active and frequent. The
start of the Proterozoic Era was dated based on the age of the oldest continental rocks.
During this time, the multicellular organisms in the form of algae in the ocean started to free

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

oxygen that bonded with chemical elements such as iron to form great mineral deposits
around the world. Overall, Earth in this era was very cold with bluish glacial ice sheets.
Table 3.2.1. shows the geologic periods during the Precambrian Era.

Table 3.2.1. Geologic periods during the Precambrian Era

Period Events

Earth’s surface was in the form of liquid rock and boiling sulfur that built
Hadean
an ocean of hot materials.

Earth’s interior was still hot and active and this caused a series of
Archaean volcanic eruptions. This formed long chains of small islands. The
continents have not formed yet during this time.

Earth was suspected to have two supercontinents: one was located in the
Proterozoic
equator and the other one was situated on the other side.

Paleozoic Era
The Paleozoic era spanned around 300 million years, which was almost half of the entire
Phanerozoic. During this time, there were six major continental landmasses. Each consisted
of different parts of the modern continents. Large blocks of limestone rock outcrops were
caused by periodic incursions of continental seas. The Paleozoic Era is mainly characterized
by the formation of global supercontinents. At the start of this era, the world-continent
Pannotia was broken into pieces leading to the formation of Pangea that makes Earth's
continents connected once again. This era is mainly characterized by the explosion of
different life forms that started to emerge on Earth. With this, it can be said that the
atmosphere started to become highly similar to what we have today. It is now capable of
supporting different life forms. Multicellular organisms present in the ocean started to
evolve and created various animals and even plants.

The Paleozoic is divided into six periods: the Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian,
Carboniferous, and Permian. Table 3.2.2 shows the summary of events in each period.

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

Table 3.2.2 Geologic periods during the Paleozoic Era

Period Events

Cambrian The explosion of life occurred.

Dominant animals were marine invertebrates such as trilobites and

Ordovician
corals.

Silurian It is marked by the first appearance of land plants.

Devonian It is also known as the Age of Fishes.

Carboniferous First seed plants and first reptiles appeared.

Permian It is marked by the extinction of 90% of Earth’s species.

These names were derived from original locations where fossilized rocks of these ages were
found.

What life forms are present during

the Precambrian and Paleozoic Era?

Life Forms During Precambrian and Paleozoic Eras

Precambrian Era
During this period, single-cell and multicellular organisms started to emerge. The first
multicellular animals, also known as Ediacarans, appeared in the fossil record that was
dated almost 600 million years ago. These were bizarre creatures that resemble modern
life-forms. It lacks a prominent head, mouths, and even digestive organs. They were found
on marine sea beds.

One of the important Ediacarans was the Dickinsonia, which resembles a ribbed doormat.
These organisms could have served as the ancestors of later animals that have completely
vanished through extinction. The first fossil of this organism was discovered in Flinders

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

Ranges in South Australia. Moreover, additional specimens were found in Mogilev

Formation in the Dniester River Basin of Podolia, Ukraine.

Organisms that survived the mass extinction during the Permian period fall into three main
categories. These are the following:
● First, the soft-bodied sponges, which lack a nervous system and lived by drawing
water and filtering out food particles.
● Second, the cnidarians that include sea anemones, corals, and jellyfish exhibited by
sac-like bodies and primitive forms of the digestive system.
● Lastly, the annelids which are represented by segmented flatworms.

Different species of Dickinsonia dated during the Precambrian Era

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

The last part of the Precambrian era was marked by a global ice age causing widespread
extinctions and many organisms at that time ceased to exist.

Paleozoic Era
The most advanced form of animals, such as the vertebrates or animals with backbones,
first appeared 525 million years ago during the Cambrian explosion. The Cambrian
explosion happened 541 million years ago leading to the emergence of most major animal
phyla. Prior to this event, most living things were simple and only consisted of individual
cells that clumped together and formed colonies. For over 70 to 80 million years after the
Cambrian explosion, the rate of diversification of organisms accelerated that formed a
variety of life forms that is present today.

From the Cambrian to Ordovician period,

two great animal faunas dominated the
ocean. Most phyla of the modern times
were present during the Cambrian but the
trilobites, brachiopods, mollusks,
hyolithids, and archaeocyathids were
the most abundant. Among these animals,
trilobite fossils are the most abundant that
were collected from different regions of
the planet. Trilobites were the dominant
species during the Cambrian period. These organisms are extinct groups of arthropods,
which are animals that have hard shells and jointed legs. Trilobites were relatives of modern
lobsters and horseshoe crabs. This first animal on Earth had three-segmented top-plated
bodies. They curled up like balls to protect themselves in seas with predators. Trilobites had
several species. They usually ranged from an inch to more than 2 feet in length. These
organisms are known to have been among the most successful prehistoric animals. More
than 17 000 species are known to have existed over 300 million years.

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

All of the mentioned organisms except the archaeocyathids survived past the Cambrian
period. However, the diversity of the remaining organisms started to decline after the
Ordovician. From the Silurian to the Permian period, the Paleozoic seas were heavily
dominated by crinoid, echinoderms, brachiopods, graptolites, and rugose corals.

A crinoid fossil

Did You Know?

The Precambrian has three official eons: Hadean, Archean, and
Proterozoic. However, some modern scientists believe that a fourth
eon exists. This is called Chaotian and known as the time when our
solar system was formed.

By the end of the Ordovician, organisms were no longer limited to the seas. Early plants
started to colonize the land and were closely followed by the invertebrates during the
Silurian Period. The vertebrates followed later on in the early Devonian. Eventually, the
primitive animals that have four limbs and spinal columns, like vertebrates called
tetrapods, walked on land. Early tetrapods were aquatic creatures that lived in swamps and
ventured to land occasionally.

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

The tetrapods migrated to land and

survived on small insects and plants. The
development of the vertebrate structure
led to more advanced animals like humans.
One of the earliest known tetrapods is the
Acanthostega. It is an extinct group of
tetrapods which are considered as some of
the oldest organisms with distinctly
recognizable limbs. These emerged during
the late Devonian period 365 million years
ago. Scientists say that Acanthostega is one
of the missing links between the
lobe-finned fishes and tetrapods.

By the end of the Devonian period, massive

forests of progymnosperms, such as
Archaeopteris became highly abundant.
Different other plants such as cycads,
glossopterids, primitive conifers, and
ferns spread across the different
landmasses. Until the Permian extinction
that happened around 251.4 million years
ago came and devastated life forms in the
ocean. Most rugose corals, echinoderms,
trilobites, and most crinoids were extinct.

Table 3.2.3. provides a list of some important fossils of earliest life forms collected in
different regions of the planet.

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

Table 3.2.3. List of relevant places where fossils were collected

Location Fossils

Aldan River, Siberia Lower Cambrian fauna

Thousands of soft-bodied animal fossils paint us a

Burgess Shale
picture of Cambrian marine life.

Canning Basin, Australia A great diversity of fossil gastropods

Permian fossils from the Glass Mountains are of

Glass Mountains, Texas
shallow, warm-water marine life.

House Range, Utah A varied array of Cambrian critters

Carboniferous coal swamps were home to early

Joggins, Nova Scotia
tetrapods such as Dendrerpeton.

Lake Winnipeg, Manitoba,

Fossils of Ordovician macroalgae.
Canada

Marble Mountains, California Olenellid trilobites

Iron concretions preserving both plants and marine

Mazon Creek, Illinois
invertebrates.

Rhynie Chert, Scotland Fossils of early land plants and terrestrial arthropods.

White-Inyo Mountains, California Cambrian reefs in the mountains of eastern California.

Do you think fossils are helpful in reconstructing

scenarios from the Precambrian and Paleozoic Era?

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

Key Points
___________________________________________________________________________________________
● The Precambrian Era has three major subdivisions: Hadean, Archean, and
Proterozoic. Today, it is known that life on Earth started during the early Archean,
thus making fossilized organisms increase throughout the Precambrian time period.
● The Paleozoic is divided into six periods: the Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian,
Devonian, Carboniferous, and Permian. These names were derived from original
locations where fossilized rocks of these ages were found.
● During this period, single-cell and multicellular organisms started to emerge. The first
multicellular animals, also known as Ediacarans, appeared in the fossil record that
was dated almost 600 million years ago.
● The most advanced form of animals such as the vertebrates or animals with
backbones first appeared 525 million years ago during the Cambrian explosion.
● Most phyla of the modern times were present during the Cambrian but trilobites,
brachiopods, mollusks, hyolithids, and archaeocyathids were the most abundant.

The Cambrian explosion led to the emergence of various phyla of organisms.

___________________________________________________________________________________________

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

Check Your Understanding

A. Complete the table below by providing the important events

that happened during the given time period.

Precambrian Era

Period Events

Hadean

Archaean

Proterozoic

Chaotian

Paleozoic Era

Cambrian

Ordovician

Silurian

Devonian

Carboniferous

Permian

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

B. Fill in the Venn diagram by comparing the similarities and

differences of Precambrian and Paleozoic Era in terms of the
given conditions:

1. Environmental Condition

2. Existing Life Forms

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

Challenge Yourself

Answer the following questions.

1. Most primitive forms of organisms are single-celled organisms that live in the ocean.
Why do you think they first conquered the ocean?
2. What conditions during the Archean period allowed the emergence of life on Earth?
3. Among the early life forms discussed, which one do you think is the best in adapting
to a changing environment? Explain your answer.
4. How do you think did the conditions of early Earth contribute to the emergence of
life?
5. How do you believe has the extinction of species in the past led to the diversity of
life today?

Photo Credits
Hadean by Tim Bertelink is licensed under CC-BY SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

Acanthostega model by Dr Gunter Bechly is licensed under CC-BY SA 3.0 via Wikimedia
Commons.

Bibliography
Aleksandr Ivanovich Oparin. 2003.The Origin of Life. Massachusetts: Courier Corporation.

Johnson, G.B., and Raven, P.H. 2001. Biology: Principles & Explorations. Austin: Holt,
Rinehart, and Winston.

Klug, W.S., Spencer, C.A., and Cummings, M.R. 2016. Concepts of Genetics. Boston: Pearson.

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Unit 3: History of Life on Earth

Mader, S.S. 2014. Concepts of Biology. New York: McGraw-Hill Education.

Matthew S. Dodd, Dominic Papineau, Tor Grenne, John F. Slack, Martin Rittner, Franco
Pirajno, Jonathan O’Neil & Crispin T. S. Little. 2017. Evidence for early life in Earth’s
oldest hydrothermal vent precipitates. Nature: 543, pages 60–64.

Rakesh Kumar Rastogi. 2007. Concepts of Biology XII. New Delhi: Rastogi Publications.

Reece, J.B., and Campbell, N.A. 2011. Campbell Biology. Boston: Benjamin
Cummings/Pearson.

Shri Hemant Roy. 2005.Comprehensive MCQs in Biology.New Delhi: Golden Bell.

3.2. Life during Precambrian and Paleozoic Period 18