Basic Facts

• Meaning: “Ancient Life”
• Epoch: Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, Permian
• Time Span: ~541–252 million years
• Dominant Life Forms: Marine invertebrates, amphibians, early reptiles
• Major Events: Cambrian Explosion- Planets and animal life moving and settling on land.
• Total fossils catalogued: Estimated at millions as of 2026.