Paleozoic Era

An age of early land plants and animals

The Paleozoic Era (539–252 Ma) is in the Phanerozoic Eon, occurring after the Neoproterozoic Era, and before the Mesozoic Era. It is a time for great plant innovation and evolution. During this time land plants evolve and emerge from water, begin as lowly moss-sized plants, and become towering trees by the end of the Devonian Period. Every major group of plants evolves during this time: mosses, liverworts, hornworts, clubmosses, ferns, horsetails, and seed plants. It is a time when plants evolve structures that are commonplace today: branching stems, roots, leaves, wood, and seeds.

Geologic Age

Subdivisions

Eon

What happened during this time?