Paleozoic Era (Dominance of Appearance of Trilobites) PDF

Pa le o z o i c E r (Domina a nce of arance of Trilobites) Appe GROUP 3 : FIRE -Mirasol, Kurt Ryan -Nicolas, Ashley -Abejo, John Rodel -Espiritu, Quina San...

Pa le o z o i c E r (Domina a nce of arance of Trilobites) Appe GROUP 3 : FIRE -Mirasol, Kurt Ryan -Nicolas, Ashley -Abejo, John Rodel -Espiritu, Quina San  Paleozoic means ‘ancient life.’ fish diversified and marine organisms were very abundant. The era began with the The oldest animals on Earth appeared just before the start of breakup of one this era sup er co ntin e n t a nd th e formation of another. 541-252 million years ago Plants became but scientists had not yet discovered w id es pr e ad. A n d the them when the geologic timescale first ve rte b r ate an im als was made. colonized land It was a time that witnessed the most rapid development and diversification of multi-cellular organisms in earth history  Divided into 6 Periods 1 3 5 Cambrian Period/ Silurian Period Carboniferous Period Evolution 444 to 419 Million 359 to 299 Million marks an important point in Years Ago Years Ago the history of life on Earth; it is the time when most of the major groups of animals first 2 4 6 appear in the fossil record. Ordovician Period Devonian Period Permian Period 419 to 359 Million 299 to 252 Million is marked by the Years Ago Years Ago appearance of the oldest complete vertebrate fossils. Life was primitive d uring the Paleozoic and includ ed many invertebrates and the earliest fish and amphibians. Trilobites are extinct distant relatives of lobsters, spiders and insects that died off more than 250 million years ago, before the dinosaurs even came into existence. Scientific Name : Trilobita They prowled the seas for roughly 270 million years, longer than the Age of Dinosaurs, and Foss il ize d rem a in s of Elra th ia kingii ), a re p res e ntative new species of trilobites are (orde r it P e oly fro m m erid th a e C a m b ria n Period. trilob unearthed every year, making them the single most diverse class of extinct life known.  THE BEST RECORD OF THE CAMBRIAN DIVERSIFICATION Burgess Shale in British Columbia, Canada Anomalocaris canadensis Laid down in the middle-Cambrian, when the "explosion" had already been underway for several million years, this formation contains the first appearance in the fossil record of brachiopods, with clamlike shells, as well as trilobites, mollusks, echinoderms, and many odd animals that probably belong to extinct lineages. WHERE WAS IT FIRST DISCOVERED? there was the rise and fall of mysterious creatures of the Ediacaran fauna, named for the fossil site in Australia where they were first discovered.  Evolution and One la rge supercontinent (Go ndwana) and eight smaller contin ents, most of them located in the Southern Hemisphere. The area that is Nor th America today stretched alo ng the equator and a shallo w sea covered part of the land. No continents near the poles, very little glacial ice.  CLIMATE The Earth had no polar ice caps. Warm and wet, without distinct seasons. Important Details Land animals and Land Plants hadn't evolved yet. THE Marine life flourished. CAM BR IAN Most major groups of invertebrates first appeared. Protective shells and exoskeletons evolved. Many PER IO D unique and unusual invertebrates, which looked nothing like the animals of today, swam in the Many of these were soft- Cambrian seas. bodied creatures whose The most iconic invertebrates were trilobites, a existence has been group of arthropods similar to horseshoe crabs chronicled in varied locations that ranged in size from a small coin to a tire. across the face of the earth, The first vertebrates were primitive, jawless fish including paleontological that first appeared near the end of the Cambrian treasure troves in China, Period. Australia and western Canada. The sediments from that sea are limestones, shales, and sandstones today. Emerging Evidences paleontology, scientific study of life of the geologic past that involves the analysis of plant and animal fossils, including those of microscopic size, preserved in rocks. George Cuvier: French naturalist often considered the “Father of Paleontology” In 1813, he formally published his “Essay on the theory of the earth” He was the first to demonstrate that the different strata of rock in the Paris basin each had its own mammal fauna.  CURRENT In most forms of fossilization, UNDERSTANDING the body of a dead organism Trace fossils made by animals settles to the bottom of a river also sh o w in cre a se d d ive rs ity in C am b rian ro cks , sh ow ing th a t or lake whereupon the animals of the Cambrian sedimentation slowly covers the we re de ve lop ing n e w ec o lo g ic al nich es a n d st ra te gie s — su c h a s body. In the Burgess Shale active hunting, burrowing however, organisms lived in deeply into sediment, and making complex branching underwater mud banks known burrows. as phyllopod beds. It is the time when most of the major groups of animals first appear in the fossil record.  ORDOVICIAN PERIOD The first land plants appeared. They were similar to mosses and other plants without deep roots or leaves. Trilobites and crinoids were still around. Many new marine invertebrates with shells evolved at this time and replaced Cambrian forms. The first corals appeared, but they were not widespread. Algae and sponges dominated reefs. Jawless, armored fish were common.  Most continents were still part of the supercontinent Gondwana. Warm and wet like North America and northern Europe were the Cambrian until slowly moving toward each other. near the end of the Near the end of the Ordovician, the part Ordovician. of Gondwana that is northern Africa Then, the climate got today moved over the South Pole, much colder and an triggering an ice age. ice age began. When more of Earth’s water is frozen in glaciers, less water fills the oceans and sea level drops. The massive glaciers that formed on proto-Africa caused sea level to drop, emptying many of the shallow seas that surrounded the continents.  EMERGING EVIDENCES / CURRENT UNDERSTANDING Carlton Brett an invertebrate paleontologist and sedimentary geologist at the University of Cincinnati. Projects involve establishing regional and global patterns of Paleozoic sequence stratigraphy and relating them to prolonged intervals of relative biotic stability, or "coordinated stasis", and episodes of abrupt change.  As Gondwana moved away from the South Pole, many of the glaciers melted, and the ice age ended. Silurian Period The climate was similar to today’s, with cold weather and glaciers near the South Occured 444 to Pole and warmer weather near the 419 Million equator. There was a significant increase in sea Years Ago level from the melted ice, resulting in the reappearance of many shallow seas. Large Corals reefs first appeared. 1 Because so much of the land was near the equator, the climate was warm and mild; it was a greenhouse age. The interiors of the large continents were dry, and salt and gypsum deposits formed.  1 Emerging Evidences: Fossil records of marine life such as fish, corals, and early amphibians found in different parts of the world. Theory: During the Devonian Period in the Paleozoic era, around 419 to 359 million years ago, life diversified and expanded in the oceans and onto land, leading to the development of complex ecosystems. Evidence of the Theory: The transition of fish to tetrapods, the first appearance of true forests, and the first evidence of insects on land all support the theory of the Devonian Period as a time of significant evolutionary advancements. Jean Baptiste Lamarck's research and observations of fossil records and geological formations played a crucial role in understanding the evolution and biodiversity during this period.  Divided into two different periods - The Mississippian Period (early Carboniferous) The Gondwana continent and the Pennsylvanian moved closer enough to the Period (late North America/Europe Carboniferous). continent to cause the initial uplift of the The Carboniferous has a Appalachian Mountains. clue in its name – CARBON – and this is Their eventual continental when much of Earth’s collision created the carbon-rich coals supercontinent Pangaea by formed because many the beginning of the places on Earth were Permian Period. swampy.  THE CARBONIFEROUS: CLIMATE 359 TO 299 MILLION YEARS AGO uniform, tropical, wet climate with little seasonality South Pole - accumulation of Ice, alternating glacial periods repeated major changes in sea level Land near the equator always stayed moist and tropical. What animals and plants were on Earth during the Period? Key: Key: Shallow Seas Wide spread Forest ANIMALS PLANTS Many of the Vertebrates no Forests were shallow marine longer had to find widespread near organisms water in which to the equator. disappeared. lay their eggs. Lush plant growth On land, the first The first land provided the raw reptiles snails and insects material for the appeared, and with wings great coal they laid the first appeared (i.e., deposits of the first conifers appeared shelled eggs. dragonflies and world. during the Carboniferous Primitive diapsid mayflies) reptile Meganisoptera (Meganeurites gracilipes Handlirsch) Pangaea now existed as a super continent that contained almost all the land area of the world. This continent stretched from the North Pole to the South Pole and was the largest land mass since before the Cambrian Period. Once again, there was an ice sheet at the South Pole. There were fewer shallow seas than during the Carboniferous Period.  CLIMATE With all the landmass now Because there were no moderating effects in one giant continent, from nearby water bodies, vast deserts formed in the central region of Pangaea. there were huge climatic changes, These deserts had great daily and seasonal temperature changes, perhaps greater than anything we see on the planet today. There was a wide latitudinal variation in climate with glaciers at the poles and tropical vegetation at the equator. The drier climate doomed the mighty coal swamps of the Carboniferous. What animals and plants were on Earth during the Period? Key: Key: Shallow Seas Wide spread Forest ANIMALS PLANTS Shallow coastal Reptiles diversified seas continued and spread across As Pangaea The LARGEST to decrease in the land. became more arid MASS EXTINCTION size, so habitats The precursors to and seasonal, most of life on our for shallow mammals evolved. of the tropical coal planet occurred at marine swamps organisms also disappeared. the end of the decreased.. Swamps were Permian when ~ As many swamps replaced by 96% of all species dried up, temperate forests perished. amphibian that contained populations abundant conifers. decreases. Thank You for Listening! -Group 3 FIRE  REFERENCES https://www.usgs.gov/youth-and-education-in-science/paleozoic https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/ordovician/ordovician.php https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/paleozoic/paleozoic.php https://www.usgs.gov/youth-and-education-in-science/paleozoic https://www.livescience.com/13312-trilobite-orgies-extinct- creatures.html https://www.livescience.com/37584-paleozoic-era.html  REFERENCES https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B978012409548905 9200 https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary- sciences/paleozoic-era https://www.britannica.com/science/Silurian-Period