Cenozoic Era
The Cenozoic Era is the era we are living in right now. This era is known for its early humans and development of life. This era's nickname is the age of mammals.
This era started 66 MYA and is still going on. There is no telling when it will end and a new era will start.
Geologic Events That Happened
*Himalayas Formed: For five million years India floated slowly away from Africa until, about 50 million years ago, India bumped into Asia. The force of this impact slowly pushed the land between them to fold up into big new mountains which we call the Himalayas.
*Continents Move to current positions: Over 55 MYA Greenland and Scandinavia separated and the Norwegion - Greenland sea emerged, linking the North and Arctic oceans.
*The Ice Age: Over 10,000 YA white sheets of ice many kilometers thick covered vast areas of the newly formed continents in temperate areas.
Development of Life
*Grass: Over 66 MYA during the Neogene period the beginning of grass was created. This extraordinary development in life helped long legged animals like the horse to adapt to the Savannah and the Prairie.
*Modern Animal Groups Appear: From more than 65 MYA the Neogene Period gives a rise to the early primates and humans. As the end of the Paleogen period came, dogs,cats and pigs became much more common.
*Lucy the Austrolapithecus: Lucy, the earliest known record of a human species, lived in eastern Africa more than 3 MYA. She was the first animal to walk on 2 legs rather than 4, an obvious sign of a developing human. Lucy had a sideways rib cage, short legs, long arms, and small brains that resembled apes but she walked on her hind legs upright like a human.
*Modern Humans: The first modern human evolved from Lucy the Austrolapithecus in Eastern Africa. Over 190,000 YA evolved into a true modern human, at the start of the Quatenary period.
The Cenozoic Era is the era we are living in right now. This era is known for its early humans and development of life. This era's nickname is the age of mammals.
This era started 66 MYA and is still going on. There is no telling when it will end and a new era will start.
Geologic Events That Happened
*Himalayas Formed: For five million years India floated slowly away from Africa until, about 50 million years ago, India bumped into Asia. The force of this impact slowly pushed the land between them to fold up into big new mountains which we call the Himalayas.
*Continents Move to current positions: Over 55 MYA Greenland and Scandinavia separated and the Norwegion - Greenland sea emerged, linking the North and Arctic oceans.
*The Ice Age: Over 10,000 YA white sheets of ice many kilometers thick covered vast areas of the newly formed continents in temperate areas.
Development of Life
*Grass: Over 66 MYA during the Neogene period the beginning of grass was created. This extraordinary development in life helped long legged animals like the horse to adapt to the Savannah and the Prairie.
*Modern Animal Groups Appear: From more than 65 MYA the Neogene Period gives a rise to the early primates and humans. As the end of the Paleogen period came, dogs,cats and pigs became much more common.
*Lucy the Austrolapithecus: Lucy, the earliest known record of a human species, lived in eastern Africa more than 3 MYA. She was the first animal to walk on 2 legs rather than 4, an obvious sign of a developing human. Lucy had a sideways rib cage, short legs, long arms, and small brains that resembled apes but she walked on her hind legs upright like a human.
*Modern Humans: The first modern human evolved from Lucy the Austrolapithecus in Eastern Africa. Over 190,000 YA evolved into a true modern human, at the start of the Quatenary period.