WHAT IS THE CENOZOIC ERA?
The Cenozoic Era, meaning 'recent life' in Greek, stretches from 66 Ma to present day, and is known as the 'Age of Mammals' due to the rapid diversification of mammals following the K-T boundary extinction. The diversification of mammals occurred during warm climates, such as the Eocene, and during colder glacial and inter-glacial climate cycles of the Pleistocene (2.58 Ma). These harsh climates have yielded a fascinating diversity of animals, many of which have modern descendants including ourselves.
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Geological time scale of the Cenozoic Era broken down into periods and epochs (by M.Soukup,, 2019)
With the evolution of early humans from human-like primates, our ancestors learned how to use tools ~1.6 Ma and work in teams to hunt Cenozoic megafauna such as Woolly Mammoths and Woolly Rhinoceros. Of these Eocene-aged megafauna, several appear in this collection including the Woolly Rhinoceros, the Dinotherium Giganteum, and the Arsenotherium Zitteli. Around 10,000 years ago, megafaunal populations began to significantly decline, potentially due to overhunting by early hunter-gatherer societies. This eventually lead to the extinction of many megafaunal species as the last glacial period of the current Ice Age came to an end and humans spread across the globe.
"Primitive Mammals From The Cenozoic" is an artists reconstruction of the environment and diversity of the Cenozoic, illustrating the coexistence of animals such as Ptilodus, Chriacus, Coryphodon, Eobasilieus, Plesiadapis, Diatryma, Andrewsarchus, and Hyracotherium. (by Publiphoto, April 4th, 2014).