6. Living rocks, evolving rocks
Keyword(s):
Life on Earth has been dated back to 3.8 billion years ago with organic carbon found in metamorphosed mudstones, but new evidence suggests it may go back even further. ‘Living rocks, evolving rocks’ describes the earliest rocks that show evidence of life, initially in anoxic conditions, such as stromatolites and banded iron formations. The Precambrian also saw widespread microbial mats growing across the seafloor. Around 550 million years ago there was a ‘Cambrian Explosion’ of metazoan marine organisms, including reef-builders and plankton rain, the consequences of which can be seen clearly in the rocks. Land-living organisms evolved in the Silurian and Devonian periods resulting in peat bogs and bone beds.
1975 ◽
Vol 189
(1095)
◽
pp. 213-230
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Keyword(s):
1990 ◽
Vol 48
(3)
◽
pp. 267-286
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Keyword(s):
Keyword(s):
1995 ◽
Vol 72
(1-2)
◽
pp. 109-145
◽
Keyword(s):
Keyword(s):