Historical Geology: Understanding Our Planet's PastProvides up-to-date and expanded coverage of the metamorphic span of Earth's history as told through fossils, rocks and species, from the very origins of the planet to the current Holocene interglacial period Annotation. Covering the metamorphic span of Earth's history as told through its fossils, rocks, and species, this book chronicles the emergence of each successive group of plants and animals. Chapters are organized according to the different geologic time periods, from the origins of the planet to the current Holocene interglacial period. An introduction details basic geological concepts, and black and white illustrations are featured throughout. Erickson is a geologist. |
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Contents
Planet Earth Origin of Land and Life | 1 |
Archean Alge The Age of Early Life | 23 |
Proterozoic Metazoans The Age of Complex Organisms | 45 |
Cambrian Invertebrates The Age of Shelly Faunas | 66 |
Ordovician Vertebrates The Age of Spinal LifeForms | 85 |
Silurian Plants The Age of Terrestrial Floras | 104 |
Devonian Fish The Age of Marine Animals | 123 |
Carboniferous Amphibians The Age of Forest Denizens | 142 |
Jurassic Birds The Age of Flying Creatures | 196 |
Cretaceous Corals The Age of Tropical Biota | 215 |
Tertiary Mammals The Age of Advanced Species | 234 |
Quaternary Glaciation The Age of Modern Life | 256 |
Conclusion | 276 |
Glossary | 277 |
288 | |
297 | |
Permian Reptiles The Age of Desert Inhabitants | 159 |
Triassic Dinosaurs The Age of Big Beast | 177 |
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abundant Africa algae ammonoids amphibians ancient animals Antarctica appeared Archean arthropods atmosphere Australia basalt Basin became began belts birds body brachiopods called Cambrian carbon dioxide Carboniferous climate collision continental continents corals courtesy USGS creatures Cretaceous crust crustal deposits Devonian dinosaurs early Earth Ediacaran evolution evolved existence fauna feet Figure fish formation formed fossil fossil record geologic giant glacial glaciers Gondwana ice age ice sheets invertebrates island Jurassic land late Laurasia lava layers life-forms limestone living major mammals marine mass extinction massive Mesozoic meteorite miles million years ago modern mountain building North America Ordovician organisms oxygen Paleozoic Pangaea percent period Permian Photo plants plate Precambrian predators primitive Proterozoic pterosaurs range reef region reptiles rift sea level seawater sediments Shale shallow shells Silurian skeletons solar South southern species stromatolite supercontinent surface tectonics temperatures terrestrial Tethys Sea thick today’s Triassic trilobites tropical vertebrates volcanic warm