Silurian

Silurian is a geologic period and system that spans 24.6 million years from the end of the Ordovician period, at 443.8 million years ago (mya), to the beginning of the Devonian period, 419.2 mya. The Silurian is the shortest period of the Paleozoic Era. As with other geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period's start and end are well identified, but the exact dates are uncertain by several million years.

Overview

The Silurian system was first identified by British geologist Roderick Murchison, who was examining fossil-bearing sedimentary rock sequences exposed in western Wales in the early 1830s. He named the sequences for a Celtic tribe of Wales, the Silures, inspired by his friend Adam Sedgwick, who had named the period of his study the Cambrian, from the Latin name for Wales.

Climate and geography

During this period, the Earth entered a long warm greenhouse phase, and warm shallow seas covered much of the equatorial land masses. Early in the Silurian, glaciers melted, causing sea levels to rise and stabilize for the rest of the period. The climate was generally warm and stable.

Life

The Silurian was a time when the Earth underwent considerable changes that had important repercussions for the environment and life within it. The Silurian witnessed a relative stabilization of the Earth's general climate, ending the previous pattern of alternating glaciations and greenhouse conditions. This likely led to a rapid increase in the diversity of marine life.

See also

• Geologic time scale
• Paleozoic Era
• Ordovician
• Devonian

References

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External links

• UCMP Berkeley Silurian
• Palaeos Silurian

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