540.00 MILLION YEARS AGO : Chengjiang Animals Flourish

Chengjiang Animals Flourish

        The first soft-bodied animals of the Phanerozoic Eon include a wide variety of marine invertebrates, some of which are large predators. Fossils of these animals have been found near Chengjiang in Yunnan, southern China.

550.00 MILLION YEARS AGO : Gondwanaland Forms

Gondwanaland Forms

        Continents in the southern hemisphere move together to form a single landmass near the south pole. This landmass is called Gondwanaland. 

        Gondwanaland, ancient landmass that consisted of the present continents of South America, Africa, Australia, and Antarctica as well as the Indian subcontinent. Gondwanaland is believed to have been intact at least twice, about 350 million years ago and about 200 million years ago. Between these two periods all seven of the present-day continents probably formed a single landmass called Pangaea. 

570.00 MILLION YEARS AGO : Phanerozoic Eon Begins

Phanerozoic Eon Begins

        The Phanerozoic Eon begins with rising ocean levels and the breakup of the supercontinent Rodinia. A northern landmass called Laurentia forms near the equator. Plate tectonics continues to increase the volume and area of the forming continents. The Phanerozoic Eon began about 570 million years ago and continues to the present.

570.00 MILLION YEARS AGO - 500.00 MILLION YEARS AGO : Cambrian Period

Cambrian Period

        The seas of the Cambrian Period are teeming with new forms of life. There are abundant animals with hard parts, such as the trilobite. During this period, all of the animal groups evolve rapidly, including the chordates, ancestors to all vertebrates. By the end of the Cambrian Period, rising global sea levels flood most of the continental landmasses.

570.00 MILLION YEARS AGO - 240.00 MILLION YEARS AGO : Paleozoic Era

Paleozoic Era

        The Paleozoic Era begins about 570 million years ago with the first shelled animals.It ends about 240 million years ago with the largest mass extinction in Earth’s history. During this era, the continents of the southern hemisphere remain joined, making up the landmass known as Gondwanaland. Toward the end of the era, the continents of the northern hemisphere join together and merge with Gondwanaland to form a single landmass called Pangaea.

580.00 MILLION YEARS AGO - 543.00 MILLION YEARS AGO : Ediacaran Animals Flourish

Ediacaran Animals Flourish

        A distinctive group of animals live in shallow seas at the end of the Proterozoic Eon. Called Ediacaran fauna, these animals have soft bodies, and are for the most part unlike later life forms. A few are recognizable sponges and anemones.

Model of Kimberella

Fossil cast of Kimberella

Model of Charnia

Fossil cast of Charnia

Model of Tribrachidium

Fossil cast of Tribrachidium

Model of Spriggina

Fossil cast of Spriggina

Model of Panvancorina

Fossil cast of Panvancorina

Model of Dickinsonia

Fossil cast of Dickinsonia

590.00 MILLION YEARS AGO : Meteorite Hits Australia

Meteorite Hits Australia

        A meteorite hits present-day southern Australia, forming the Acraman crater. Acraman is 160 km (99 mi) in diameter.