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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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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. Earliest possible evidence of the controlled use of fire by Homo erectus
30 Ma
49 Ma
1.5 Ma
50 Ma

2. Paranthropus evolve.
0.6 Ma
2.7 Ma
5 Ma
5 Ma

3. Appearance of the genus Ardipithecus
60 Ma
40 Ma
5.5 Ma
60 Ma

4. Whales return to the water.
15 Ma
1.5 Ma
49 Ma
18-12 Ma

5. Homo heidelbergensis evolves.
0.35 Ma
6 Ma
0.6 Ma
56 Ma

6. Evolution of the first primates and miacids. Flightless birds diversify.
56 Ma
0.3 Ma
60 Ma
0.5 Ma

7. First thylacinid marsupials evolve.
2.6 Ma
33 Ma
55 Ma
40 Ma

8. Appearance of the genus Australopithecus
1.2 Ma
4.5 Ma
2.5 Ma
60 Ma

9. First mastodons - bovids - and kangaroos. Australian megafauna diversify.
15 Ma
0.64 Ma
40 Ma
2.7 Ma

10. Homo antecessor evolves. Paranthropus dies out.
1.2 Ma
63 Ma
15 Ma
63 Ma

11. 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 -
2.6 Ma
0.2 Ma
4.8 Ma
55 Ma

12. First bats.
52 Ma
50 Ma
0.35 Ma
4.5 Ma

13. Yellowstone caldera erupts
6.5 Ma
37 Ma
34 Ma
0.64 Ma

14. Yellowstone caldera erupts
52 Ma
25 Ma
0.64 Ma
18-12 Ma

15. Estimated age of the Homo/Pan (human vs. chimpanzee) split.
5.4-6.3 Ma
4.5 Ma
28 Ma
6.5 Ma

16. Neanderthals evolve.
1.7 Ma
0.35 Ma
0.79 Ma
0.7 Ma

17. Age of the Catarrhini parvorder; first canines evolve. Lepidopteran insects become recognizable. Gastornis goes extinct. Basilosaurus evolves.
1.5 Ma
33 Ma
2.7 Ma
40 Ma

18. Australopithecines go extinct.
1.7 Ma
2.6 Ma
3 Ma
35 Ma

19. Grasslands first appear. Glyptodonts - ground sloths - peccaries - dogs - eagles - and hawks evolve.
1.2 Ma
36 Ma
35 Ma
25 Ma

20. The mammoth appears.
1.2 Ma
3 Ma
4.8 Ma
50 Ma

21. Gastornis evolves.
0.6 Ma
26 Ma
56 Ma
30 Ma

22. Gastornis evolves.
15 Ma
25 Ma
56 Ma
36 Ma

23. First creodonts.
33 Ma
3 Ma
5 Ma
63 Ma

24. Australopithecines diversify.
0.35 Ma
5.5 Ma
0.5 Ma
6 Ma

25. Middle Paleolithic begins. Appearance of Homo sapiens in Africa
36 Ma
24 Ma
6 Ma
0.2 Ma

26. Homo heidelbergensis evolves.
30 Ma
0.6 Ma
34 Ma
60 Ma

27. Appearance of the genus Australopithecus
40 Ma
28 Ma
4.5 Ma
20 Ma

28. The mammoth appears.
2.5 Ma
37 Ma
4.8 Ma
49 Ma

29. First Nimravids.
0.3 Ma
52 Ma
33 Ma
37 Ma

30. Neanderthals evolve.
60 Ma
0.35 Ma
2.5 Ma
4.5 Ma

31. 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 -
63 Ma
2.6 Ma
55 Ma
5.4-6.3 Ma

32. Emergence of the first true elephants.
6.5 Ma
0.3 Ma
26 Ma
36 Ma

33. First members of the Hominini tribe.
6.5 Ma
35 Ma
25 Ma
2.7 Ma

34. Paraceratherium evolves.
34 Ma
5.5 Ma
36 Ma
28 Ma

35. Isthmus of Panama joins North and South America. Great AmericanInterchange.
56 Ma
3 Ma
50 Ma
0.5 Ma

36. Africa collides with Eurasia - closing the Tethys Sea. Divergence of cat and dog ancestors. Primates diversify. Brontotheres - tapirs - rhinos - and camels evolve.
55 Ma
15 Ma
5.4-6.3 Ma
50 Ma

37. Insects diversify.First large horses.
20 Ma
6 Ma
10 Ma
33 Ma

38. Evolution of the first primates and miacids. Flightless birds diversify.
2.7 Ma
50 Ma
52 Ma
60 Ma

39. Pliocene epoch begins.First tree sloths and hippopotami.First large vultures. Nimravids go extinct.
34 Ma
10 Ma
5 Ma
25 Ma

40. last reversal of the earth's magnetic field
2.5 Ma
0.7 Ma
34 Ma
60 Ma

41. colonisation of Eurasia by Homo erectus
3 Ma
0.5 Ma
35 Ma
36 Ma

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

43. First Nimravids.
52 Ma
37 Ma
20 Ma
3 Ma

44. First members of the Hominini tribe.
0.5 Ma
6.5 Ma
15 Ma
28 Ma

45. Brontotheres go extinct. Pigs evolve. South America separates from Antarctica - becoming an island continent.
2.7 Ma
0.5 Ma
30 Ma
0.64 Ma

46. Emergence of the first true elephants.
20 Ma
28 Ma
52 Ma
26 Ma

47. 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.
0.35 Ma
3 Ma
2.5 Ma
56 Ma

48. Estimated age of the Hominidae/Hylobatidae (great apes vs. gibbons) split.
56 Ma
28 Ma
18-12 Ma
4.5 Ma

49. Earliest possible evidence of the controlled use of fire by Homo erectus
1.5 Ma
26 Ma
0.79 Ma
26 Ma

50. current ice age begins
4.5 Ma
0.3 Ma
2.6 Ma
37 Ma