Early Cretaceous
E695020
The Early Cretaceous was a geological period roughly 145 to 100 million years ago marked by diverse dinosaur faunas, the rise of flowering plants, and significant continental breakup and climate change.
Observed surface forms (1)
| Surface form | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Barremian–Aptian | 1 |
Statements (69)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
geological period
ⓘ
subdivision of the Cretaceous ⓘ |
| biota |
abundant marine reptiles
ⓘ
diverse invertebrate reef communities ⓘ dominance of gymnosperms in many floras ⓘ early mosasauroid lizards ⓘ first widespread angiosperm-dominated ecosystems ⓘ ichthyosaurs ⓘ plesiosaurs ⓘ pterosaurs ⓘ |
| characterizedBy |
active seafloor spreading
ⓘ
diverse dinosaur faunas ⓘ high sea levels ⓘ intense volcanic activity ⓘ oceanic anoxic events ⓘ rise of flowering plants ⓘ significant continental breakup ⓘ warm global climate ⓘ widespread shallow epicontinental seas ⓘ |
| climate |
generally greenhouse conditions
ⓘ
little to no polar ice ⓘ strong latitudinal temperature gradients ⓘ |
| containsStage |
Albian
ⓘ
Aptian ⓘ Barremian NERFINISHED ⓘ Berriasian ⓘ Hauterivian NERFINISHED ⓘ Valanginian ⓘ |
| definedBy | International Commission on Stratigraphy NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| endBoundary | Early–Late Cretaceous boundary ⓘ |
| endTime | approximately 100.5 million years ago ⓘ |
| follows | Late Jurassic NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| hasAbbreviation |
Early Cretaceous Series
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Lower Cretaceous ⓘ |
| includesFamousTaxa |
Archaeopteryx-like early birds
ⓘ
Baryonyx NERFINISHED ⓘ Confuciusornis NERFINISHED ⓘ Deinonychus NERFINISHED ⓘ Iguanodon NERFINISHED ⓘ Microraptor NERFINISHED ⓘ Psittacosaurus NERFINISHED ⓘ Sauropelta NERFINISHED ⓘ Spinosaurus NERFINISHED ⓘ Utahraptor NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| paleogeography |
continued rifting of Gondwana
ⓘ
development of narrow proto-Atlantic Ocean ⓘ opening of the South Atlantic Ocean ⓘ progressive breakup of Pangaea ⓘ separation of Africa and South America ⓘ |
| partOf |
Cretaceous
ⓘ
Mesozoic Era NERFINISHED ⓘ Phanerozoic Eon NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| precedes | Late Cretaceous ⓘ |
| sawDiversificationOf |
ammonites
ⓘ
angiosperms ⓘ ankylosaurian dinosaurs ⓘ belemnites ⓘ birds ⓘ ceratopsian dinosaurs ⓘ iguanodontian ornithopods ⓘ mammals ⓘ sauropod dinosaurs ⓘ spinosaurid theropods ⓘ teleost fishes ⓘ |
| startBoundary | Cretaceous–Jurassic boundary NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| startTime | approximately 145 million years ago ⓘ |
| stratigraphicUse |
correlates with Lower Cretaceous Series
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
used as a chronostratigraphic unit in geology ⓘ |
| temporalRange | 145–100.5 Ma ⓘ |
Referenced by (9)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
Barremian–Aptian