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Cenozoic History Timeline

Instructions:

Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
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Match each statement with the correct term.
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This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.

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

2. Gastornis evolves.
56 Ma
63 Ma
5 Ma
63 Ma

3. colonisation of Eurasia by Homo erectus
1.2 Ma
2.5 Ma
37 Ma
0.5 Ma

4. Australopithecines go extinct.
1.7 Ma
5.4-6.3 Ma
34 Ma
0.79 Ma

5. The mammoth appears.
52 Ma
4.8 Ma
5 Ma
5.4-6.3 Ma

6. Whales return to the water.
18-12 Ma
5 Ma
49 Ma
1.2 Ma

7. Homo antecessor evolves. Paranthropus dies out.
1.2 Ma
15 Ma
1.7 Ma
0.6 Ma

8. First members of the Hominini tribe.
6.5 Ma
4.5 Ma
28 Ma
24 Ma

9. Grasslands first appear. Glyptodonts - ground sloths - peccaries - dogs - eagles - and hawks evolve.
5 Ma
35 Ma
6.5 Ma
15 Ma

10. 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 -
20 Ma
55 Ma
15 Ma
34 Ma

11. Estimated age of the Homo/Pan (human vs. chimpanzee) split.
3 Ma
1.7 Ma
5.4-6.3 Ma
0.79 Ma

12. Approximate age of Canis lupus. Middle Stone Age begins in Africa. Gigantopithecus evolves.
34 Ma
0.7 Ma
0.2 Ma
0.3 Ma

13. Emergence of the first true elephants.
26 Ma
5.4-6.3 Ma
1.7 Ma
6.5 Ma

14. End of Eocene - start of Oligocene epoch.
36 Ma
55 Ma
5.5 Ma
6 Ma

15. First mastodons - bovids - and kangaroos. Australian megafauna diversify.
5.5 Ma
0.35 Ma
2.7 Ma
15 Ma

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

17. Paraceratherium evolves.
0.35 Ma
28 Ma
18-12 Ma
56 Ma

18. Earliest possible evidence of the controlled use of fire by Homo erectus
0.7 Ma
20 Ma
1.5 Ma
56 Ma

19. Australopithecines go extinct.
49 Ma
0.64 Ma
49 Ma
1.7 Ma

20. Yellowstone caldera erupts
20 Ma
0.64 Ma
6.5 Ma
4.8 Ma

21. 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 -
1.2 Ma
1.2 Ma
55 Ma
63 Ma

22. First bats.
33 Ma
52 Ma
63 Ma
4.5 Ma

23. colonisation of Eurasia by Homo erectus
1.2 Ma
0.5 Ma
1.7 Ma
30 Ma

24. Isthmus of Panama joins North and South America. Great AmericanInterchange.
50 Ma
3 Ma
37 Ma
56 Ma

25. Paraceratherium evolves.
28 Ma
40 Ma
50 Ma
4.8 Ma

26. Grasslands first appear. Glyptodonts - ground sloths - peccaries - dogs - eagles - and hawks evolve.
35 Ma
0.6 Ma
0.5 Ma
37 Ma

27. First deer.
0.64 Ma
25 Ma
2.6 Ma
49 Ma

28. Whales return to the water.
2.6 Ma
26 Ma
49 Ma
33 Ma

29. Age of the Catarrhini parvorder; first canines evolve. Lepidopteran insects become recognizable. Gastornis goes extinct. Basilosaurus evolves.
50 Ma
40 Ma
4.8 Ma
55 Ma

30. Earliest demonstrable evidence of the controlled use of fire by Homo erectus
1.2 Ma
0.79 Ma
6 Ma
34 Ma

31. Brontotheres go extinct. Pigs evolve. South America separates from Antarctica - becoming an island continent.
20 Ma
4.8 Ma
30 Ma
50 Ma

32. Insects diversify.First large horses.
0.64 Ma
33 Ma
20 Ma
10 Ma

33. Evolution of the first primates and miacids. Flightless birds diversify.
25 Ma
60 Ma
1.2 Ma
28 Ma

34. First thylacinid marsupials evolve.
5 Ma
36 Ma
33 Ma
25 Ma

35. Giraffes and giant anteaters evolve.
52 Ma
20 Ma
35 Ma
0.64 Ma

36. Homo antecessor evolves. Paranthropus dies out.
1.2 Ma
1.7 Ma
50 Ma
25 Ma

37. Gastornis evolves.
52 Ma
37 Ma
52 Ma
56 Ma

38. Middle Paleolithic begins. Appearance of Homo sapiens in Africa
0.2 Ma
0.35 Ma
4.8 Ma
49 Ma

39. 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.
4.8 Ma
2.5 Ma
0.3 Ma
63 Ma

40. current ice age begins
6 Ma
50 Ma
2.6 Ma
5.4-6.3 Ma

41. Neogene period and Miocene epoch begin
60 Ma
24 Ma
2.7 Ma
63 Ma

42. The mammoth appears.
5.4-6.3 Ma
4.5 Ma
50 Ma
4.8 Ma

43. Age of the Catarrhini parvorder; first canines evolve. Lepidopteran insects become recognizable. Gastornis goes extinct. Basilosaurus evolves.
34 Ma
40 Ma
0.7 Ma
5.5 Ma

44. Neanderthals evolve.
56 Ma
0.35 Ma
60 Ma
2.7 Ma

45. Homo heidelbergensis evolves.
2.7 Ma
40 Ma
37 Ma
0.6 Ma

46. First Nimravids.
1.5 Ma
4.8 Ma
35 Ma
37 Ma

47. Brontotheres go extinct. Pigs evolve. South America separates from Antarctica - becoming an island continent.
33 Ma
1.2 Ma
20 Ma
30 Ma

48. Pliocene epoch begins.First tree sloths and hippopotami.First large vultures. Nimravids go extinct.
5 Ma
24 Ma
4.5 Ma
2.5 Ma

49. current ice age begins
36 Ma
37 Ma
33 Ma
2.6 Ma

50. First mastodons - bovids - and kangaroos. Australian megafauna diversify.
2.5 Ma
18-12 Ma
26 Ma
15 Ma