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| OVERVIEW |
Paleocene 65.5–55.8 mya |
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Defining Characteristics:
- • “Age of Mammals”
begins
- • flowering plants and conifers abundant
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Secondary Characteristics:
- • global climate warming
- • abundant plants, fish, crocodiles, and mammals
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On the basis of fossil plants, W. P. Schimper separated the lower
part of Lyell's Eocene and named it Paleocene
in 1874. The name is derived from the Greek words palaios,
meaning “ancient” or “old,” and kainos,
meaning “recent.” Schimper chose this name to describe
the oldest epoch of the “recent” Paleogene
Period, marking the onset of the Cenozoic Era.
Paleocene rocks are common in the western United States, South America,
western Europe, and eastern Asia.
At the onset of the Paleocene Epoch, Earth was recovering from the
end-Cretaceous asteroid impact. The climate was subtropical
almost to the polar circles, ocean temperatures were high, and polar
ice caps were absent. The oceans invaded many coastal plain areas,
as well as some continental interiors, but mountain-building forced
these seas to retreat. Land bridges existed between North America,
Asia, and Europe, while South America and Antarctica remained connected
to each other. Africa, Australia, and India were island continents
or subcontinents. Mammals began to take advantage
of the niches left empty by the extinction of the dinosaurs, evolving
into many new species. Abrupt warming at the end of the Paleocene
followed the release of a large volume of methane contained in seafloor
sediments. This led to a major extinction of deep-sea foraminiferans
and a major reorganization of many terrestrial and marine communities.
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Epoch Overview |
Terrestrial Life through the Paleocene |
Life in the Paleocene Oceans
Climates and Shifting Continents
Department of Paleobiology Home |
National Museum of Natural History Home
Smithsonian Institution Home
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