Era Paleozoic Era

Paleozoic Era 10

• 538.8 Ma – 521 Ma Cambrian Explosion Most animal body plans appear Rapid diversification of complex multicellular life with hard body parts.
• 470 Ma First Coral Reefs Ordovician reef systems First significant coral-stromatoporoid reef systems in shallow Ordovician seas.
• 443.8 Ma End-Ordovician Extinction First major mass extinction Two-phase extinction driven by glaciation and sea level fall; ~85% of marine species lost.
• 430 Ma First Vascular Plants Life colonises the land Early plants like Cooksonia spread onto land.
• 385 Ma First Forests Devonian tree evolution Archaeopteris and Wattieza form first forests, dramatically altering the carbon cycle.
• 375 Ma First Tetrapods Fish crawl onto land Tiktaalik and relatives develop limbs and begin exploiting terrestrial environments.
• 372 Ma – 358.9 Ma Late Devonian Extinction Kellwasser and Hangenberg events Series of pulses over ~20 Ma; reef ecosystems collapse; ~75% of species lost.
• 335 Ma – 270 Ma Pangaea Assembles Supercontinent forms All major landmasses collide to form Pangaea.
• 312 Ma First Reptiles Amniote egg evolves Evolution of the amniotic egg frees vertebrates from dependency on water.
• 251.902 Ma End-Permian Extinction The Great Dying — 96% of marine species lost Largest mass extinction; caused by Siberian Traps volcanism, ocean acidification and anoxia.