Scott A Elias, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, USA
Published online: April 2001
DOI: 10.1038/npg.els.0001646
Terrestrial ecosystems are the large-scale associations of the biological communities living on land. Although the last 100 million years represent only a small fraction (perhaps 2%) of the earth's history, revolutionary changes in terrestrial life occurred during this period.
Keywords: cretaceous; tertiary; quaternary; mesozoic; cenozoic; dinosaurs; mammals; continental drift; fossils
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Figure 1. Major divisions of geological time from 136 million years ago to the present.
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| References | |
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| Further Reading | |
| Bermudez de Castro JM, Arsuaga JL, Carbonell E et al. (1997) A hominid from the Lower Pleistocene of Atapuerca, Spain: possible ancestor to Neanderthals and modern humans. Science 276: 1392–1395. | |
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| book Collinson ME and Hooker JJ (1989) "Vegetational and mammalian faunal changes in the Early Tertiary of southern England". In: Friis EM (ed) The Origins of Angiosperms and Their Biological Consequences, pp. 259–304. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. | |
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| Hill RS, Harwood DM and Webb P-N (1996) Nothofagus beardmorensis (Nothofagaceae), a new species based on leaves from the Pliocene Sirius Group, Transantarctic Mountains, Antarctica. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 94: 11–24. | |
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| book Van Valkenburgh B and Janis CM (1993) "Historical diversity patterns in North American large herbivores and carnivores". In: Ricklefs RE and Schluter D (eds) Species Diversity in Ecological Communities, pp. 330–340. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. | |
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