Oligocene
Oligocene
Hierarchy: | Phanerozoic Cenozoic Paleogene Oligocene |
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Classification: | Epoch (as per International Commission on Stratigraphy) |
Top: | 23.03 Ma |
Base: | 33.9 Ma |
Preceeds: | Neogene Miocene Aquitanian |
Follows: | Eocene Priabonian |
Primary Divisions: | ChattianRupelian |
Name origin: | The name Oligocene comes from the Ancient Greek ὀλίγος (oligos, "few") and καινός (kainos, "new"), and refers to the sparsity of extant forms of molluscs. |
Warm but cooling climate, moving towards Icehouse; Rapid evolution and diversification of fauna, especially mammals.
Major evolution and dispersal of modern types of flowering plants, a global expansion of grasslands, and a regression of tropical broad leaf forests to the equatorial belt.
Major evolution and dispersal of modern types of flowering plants, a global expansion of grasslands, and a regression of tropical broad leaf forests to the equatorial belt.
Geologic Events
Event Name | Type | Age | Area |
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Andean orogeny (ongoing) | Orogeny | Maximum Age: 200 Ma | South America |
Overview of geological time
List all geological events