The Cambrian (/ ˈ k æ m b r i. ə n, ˈ k eɪ m-/ KAM-bree-ən, KAYM-) is the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era, and the Phanerozoic Eon. [5] The Cambrian lasted 51.95 million years from the end of the preceding Ediacaran period 538.8 Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the Ordovician Period 486.85 Ma. [1]

Apr 3, 2025 · Cambrian Period, earliest time division of the Paleozoic Era and Phanerozoic Eon, lasting from 538.8 million to 485.4 million years ago. The Cambrian System, named by English geologist Adam Sedgwick for slaty rocks in southern Wales and southwestern England, contains the earliest record of abundant and varied life-forms.

Apr 3, 2025 · Cambrian Period - Fossils, Rocks, Animals: Cambrian rocks have a special biological significance, because they are the earliest to contain diverse fossils of animals. These rocks also include the first appearances of most animal phyla that have fossil records.

Oct 28, 2012 · The Cambrian* Period begins the Phanerozoic Eon, the last 542 million years during which fossils with hard parts have existed. It is the first division of the Paleozoic Era (542Ma -251Ma). Marine animals with mineralized skeletons make their first appearance in the shallow seas of the Cambrian, though only "small shelly fossils" (tiny shells ...

May 27, 2016 · The Cambrian Explosion was a dramatic burst of evolutionary changes in life on Earth. During the Cambrian Period, which began about 540 million years, trilobites were the dominant species.

Jan 22, 2025 · The Cambrian Period marks an important point in the history of life on Earth; it is the time when many kinds of invertebrates and the first vertebrates—fishes—appeared in the fossil record. The Burgess Shale contains the best record of Cambrian animal fossils including soft-bodied forms.

Learn more about a time period marked by an intense burst of evolution. The Cambrian period, part of the Paleozoic era, produced the most intense burst of evolution ever known. The Cambrian...

Almost every metazoan phylum with hard parts, and many that lack hard parts, made its first appearance in the Cambrian. The only modern phylum with an adequate fossil record to appear after the Cambrian was the phylum Bryozoa, which is not known before the early Ordovician.

Cambrian Period, Oldest time division of the Paleozoic Era. During the Cambrian, 541–485.4 million years ago, there were widespread seas and several scattered landmasses. The largest continent was Gondwana. The average climate was probably warmer than today, with less variation between regions.

The Cambrian is the first geological period of the Palaeozoic era and the Phanerozoic eon. It lasted from 541 million years ago to 485.4 million years ago. [1] Before it came the Ediacaran, and after it the Ordovician. Biologists have learnt quite a lot about the soft parts of Cambrian animals.