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Cenozoic History Timeline

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Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
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Match each statement with the correct term.
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1. Giraffes and giant anteaters evolve.
0.5 Ma
52 Ma
20 Ma
52 Ma

2. start of the Pleistocene epoch - the Stone Age and the current Quaternary period; emergence of the genus Homo. Smilodon - the best known of the sabre-toothed cats - appears.
26 Ma
60 Ma
40 Ma
2.5 Ma

3. First bats.
52 Ma
4.8 Ma
0.35 Ma
37 Ma

4. Yellowstone caldera erupts
0.64 Ma
0.7 Ma
55 Ma
0.7 Ma

5. Australopithecines go extinct.
1.7 Ma
20 Ma
0.3 Ma
5.5 Ma

6. Africa collides with Eurasia - closing the Tethys Sea. Divergence of cat and dog ancestors. Primates diversify. Brontotheres - tapirs - rhinos - and camels evolve.
50 Ma
33 Ma
4.5 Ma
2.7 Ma

7. current ice age begins
35 Ma
2.6 Ma
49 Ma
2.5 Ma

8. Yellowstone caldera erupts
40 Ma
1.7 Ma
6.5 Ma
0.64 Ma

9. Paranthropus evolve.
2.7 Ma
18-12 Ma
2.5 Ma
37 Ma

10. Insects diversify.First large horses.
56 Ma
5 Ma
10 Ma
0.7 Ma

11. Australopithecines diversify.
6 Ma
2.7 Ma
52 Ma
2.5 Ma

12. Estimated age of the Hominidae/Hylobatidae (great apes vs. gibbons) split.
1.2 Ma
18-12 Ma
0.2 Ma
15 Ma

13. The island of theIndian subcontinent collides with Asia - thrusting up the Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau. Many modern bird groups appear.First whale ancestors.First rodents - lagomorphs - armadillos - sirenians - proboscideans - perissodactyls -
5.5 Ma
55 Ma
34 Ma
56 Ma

14. Whales return to the water.
36 Ma
49 Ma
2.7 Ma
25 Ma

15. Age of the Catarrhini parvorder; first canines evolve. Lepidopteran insects become recognizable. Gastornis goes extinct. Basilosaurus evolves.
34 Ma
40 Ma
6.5 Ma
56 Ma

16. Gastornis evolves.
30 Ma
28 Ma
56 Ma
63 Ma

17. colonisation of Eurasia by Homo erectus
37 Ma
6.5 Ma
49 Ma
0.5 Ma

18. Middle Paleolithic begins. Appearance of Homo sapiens in Africa
2.7 Ma
0.2 Ma
6 Ma
49 Ma

19. First members of the Hominini tribe.
40 Ma
15 Ma
2.5 Ma
6.5 Ma

20. Neogene period and Miocene epoch begin
1.5 Ma
0.5 Ma
0.7 Ma
24 Ma

21. Africa collides with Eurasia - closing the Tethys Sea. Divergence of cat and dog ancestors. Primates diversify. Brontotheres - tapirs - rhinos - and camels evolve.
60 Ma
0.3 Ma
50 Ma
18-12 Ma

22. First mastodons - bovids - and kangaroos. Australian megafauna diversify.
1.7 Ma
15 Ma
40 Ma
55 Ma

23. Homo heidelbergensis evolves.
24 Ma
37 Ma
56 Ma
0.6 Ma

24. Homo antecessor evolves. Paranthropus dies out.
10 Ma
50 Ma
60 Ma
1.2 Ma

25. Australopithecines diversify.
6 Ma
6.5 Ma
0.6 Ma
0.2 Ma

26. Grasslands first appear. Glyptodonts - ground sloths - peccaries - dogs - eagles - and hawks evolve.
4.5 Ma
35 Ma
1.7 Ma
4.8 Ma

27. End of Eocene - start of Oligocene epoch.
4.8 Ma
36 Ma
5.4-6.3 Ma
63 Ma

28. First thylacinid marsupials evolve.
63 Ma
1.5 Ma
28 Ma
33 Ma

29. Neogene period and Miocene epoch begin
0.64 Ma
25 Ma
24 Ma
55 Ma

30. First thylacinid marsupials evolve.
6 Ma
2.6 Ma
26 Ma
33 Ma

31. Approximate age of Canis lupus. Middle Stone Age begins in Africa. Gigantopithecus evolves.
0.7 Ma
52 Ma
30 Ma
0.3 Ma

32. The island of theIndian subcontinent collides with Asia - thrusting up the Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau. Many modern bird groups appear.First whale ancestors.First rodents - lagomorphs - armadillos - sirenians - proboscideans - perissodactyls -
55 Ma
33 Ma
50 Ma
40 Ma

33. last reversal of the earth's magnetic field
37 Ma
0.79 Ma
0.64 Ma
0.7 Ma

34. Brontotheres go extinct. Pigs evolve. South America separates from Antarctica - becoming an island continent.
0.64 Ma
15 Ma
30 Ma
49 Ma

35. Approximate age of Canis lupus. Middle Stone Age begins in Africa. Gigantopithecus evolves.
0.3 Ma
2.5 Ma
0.2 Ma
52 Ma

36. current ice age begins
60 Ma
2.6 Ma
0.64 Ma
3 Ma

37. Earliest possible evidence of the controlled use of fire by Homo erectus
0.79 Ma
5.4-6.3 Ma
1.5 Ma
40 Ma

38. Gastornis evolves.
0.6 Ma
56 Ma
34 Ma
5.4-6.3 Ma

39. Emergence of the first true elephants.
36 Ma
5 Ma
26 Ma
35 Ma

40. Neanderthals evolve.
30 Ma
34 Ma
0.35 Ma
1.2 Ma

41. Homo antecessor evolves. Paranthropus dies out.
28 Ma
40 Ma
0.35 Ma
1.2 Ma

42. Appearance of the genus Australopithecus
60 Ma
49 Ma
4.5 Ma
5 Ma

43. start of the Pleistocene epoch - the Stone Age and the current Quaternary period; emergence of the genus Homo. Smilodon - the best known of the sabre-toothed cats - appears.
28 Ma
63 Ma
0.5 Ma
2.5 Ma

44. Cats evolve.
1.2 Ma
5 Ma
5.4-6.3 Ma
34 Ma

45. Emergence of the first true elephants.
5.4-6.3 Ma
26 Ma
63 Ma
18-12 Ma

46. Isthmus of Panama joins North and South America. Great AmericanInterchange.
49 Ma
3 Ma
25 Ma
36 Ma

47. Appearance of the genus Ardipithecus
5.5 Ma
6.5 Ma
0.5 Ma
49 Ma

48. First creodonts.
4.8 Ma
28 Ma
4.5 Ma
63 Ma

49. Appearance of the genus Ardipithecus
0.35 Ma
5.5 Ma
20 Ma
28 Ma

50. Middle Paleolithic begins. Appearance of Homo sapiens in Africa
50 Ma
0.2 Ma
28 Ma
35 Ma