The Paleozoic Era 544- 245 million years ago
This era is so significant because it is really when life started to erupt. Animals with vertebrates came alive and one of the most famous supercontinents formed, Pangea.
Around 544 million years ago, ancient continents were south of the equator. These continents were not large and were surrounded by shallow waters. This is strange because now most of the continents are north of the equator.
Around 544 million years ago, ancient continents were south of the equator. These continents were not large and were surrounded by shallow waters. This is strange because now most of the continents are north of the equator.
360 million years ago Europe collided with North America. This formed large mountains because the two plates collided. We have proof of this because there are similar rock structures in the UK. They run along the Eastern part of the USA.
80 million years after the Appalachian mountains form, Pangea forms. Pangea means all land. It was called this because al the continents came together and formed one really big supercontinent. Africa was connected to South America just for an example.
500 million years ago, vertebrates arise. Vertebrates are animals with a backbone. Some examples are mammals and some reptiles. They are ancestors of the modern octopus and squid.
25 million years after vertebrates arise, plants start to grow. They have been growing in the water for many years and around now they grow on land. These plants were small and very low-lying. They could only grow in damp areas because they were the very first plants and they just came form a water environment so they needed to stay alive and eat. To keep themselves alive, they relied on sunshine and rain that would fall.
Lungfish appeared about 416 million years ago. These strange fish have strong, muscular fins that act like feet to walk on land. These were the first fish to do so. What makes them a lung fish is that they have to sacks on their sides that acted like lungs.
About 400 million years ago, insects evolved. This was a big step in the development of Earth because these were the first creatures to fly. Many other animals were able to grow off of the very first insects which included the dragonfly and the cockroach. These insects were invertebrates and survived by eating plants that just recently appeared.
Around 300 million years ago, reptiles first appeared. These were carboniferous animals that had scaly skin. Reptiles lay eggs and have tough, leathery skin. Most of these reptiles were large and were low to the ground.
Mass Extinction
The mass extinction for this era was possibly caused by Pangea. When the continents came together, there was a massive climate change that might have killed most of the life during the Paleozoic era.