The Paleogene period was from 66 to 23 million years ago.
Oceans and Continents
![Picture](/uploads/2/3/9/8/23985652/2704431.png?205)
During the Paleogene period, Pangaea had already split up. About 50 million years ago, India collided with Eurasia, which started to form the Himalayas. Throughout the whole period, most of the continents continued drifting farther away from each other as the Atlantic ocean kept widening.
Life
There was a lot of change in the different life forms of the Paleogene period. Smaller mammals and birds had a chance to diversify and fill the Earth because of the mass extinction that started the Paleogene period and ended the Cretaceous period. Unlike the Cretaceous period, the biggest land animals around were about the size of a small horse at the beginning of the period, to the size of a rhinoceros at the end. The first whales and diversified sharks also popped up in the sea. As for plants, grasses and flowering plants expanded and diversified, and deciduous trees spread.
Major Events (not in order)
-India collided with Eurasia
-Mammals got bigger and diversified
-Birds diversified
-First grass
-HUGE global warming and cooling
-Grasslands take over forests
-North America and Europe split, along with Australia and Antarctica
-Mammals got bigger and diversified
-Birds diversified
-First grass
-HUGE global warming and cooling
-Grasslands take over forests
-North America and Europe split, along with Australia and Antarctica
Atmosphere and Climate
The climate in the mid Paleogene period roughly 4-10 degrees Celsius warmer then ours. The poles were warmer (crocodile-like creatures lived above the Arctic circle and there were palm trees in Alaska!), water level was a bit higher and now icy places were often above freezing. However, at the very beginning and end of the period temperatures and climate were a lot like our climate is today. There was also a higher percentage of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere (water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, ozone, etc.).
Paleogene Compared to Other Periods
There were a lot more mammals and birds in the Paleogene period then past periods, but there were many less reptiles because most had died in the mass extinction. The climate was also a lot warmer (see above) which resulted in organisms evolving into more tropical suited beings.
What's the difference between the Paleogene period and today?
Here are 10 of the major differences:
1. There was more oxygen in the atmosphere
2. There was more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
3. There were greater temperature changes than there has been lately in the Quaternary period
4. There was less larger life, as all of the dinosaurs had just been killed
5. The Himalayas were a lot smaller
6. The continents were closer together
7. There was less sea life than today
8. At the beginning there were very few flowering plants
9. There were only the precursors of many of todays animals
10. There were no hominids yet! (That didn't come until the Neogene period)
1. There was more oxygen in the atmosphere
2. There was more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
3. There were greater temperature changes than there has been lately in the Quaternary period
4. There was less larger life, as all of the dinosaurs had just been killed
5. The Himalayas were a lot smaller
6. The continents were closer together
7. There was less sea life than today
8. At the beginning there were very few flowering plants
9. There were only the precursors of many of todays animals
10. There were no hominids yet! (That didn't come until the Neogene period)