Cretaceous
Sign in to saveThe Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 Ma (million years ago). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ninth and longest geological period of the entire Phanerozoic. The name is derived from the Latin , 'chalk', which is abundant in deposits from the latter half of the period. It is usually abbreviated K, for its German translation .
AI overview
The Cretaceous is a geological period that lasted approximately 77 million years, ending about 66 million years ago, and represents the final and longest period of the Mesozoic Era. It gets its name from the abundant chalk deposits found in rocks from the latter part of this time span, and it is the longest geological period in the entire Phanerozoic Eon.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Key facts
- Geologic timespan.name
- Cretaceous
- Geologic timespan.color
- Cretaceous
- Geologic timespan.top_bar
- Phanerozoic
- Geologic timespan.time_start
- 143.1
- Geologic timespan.time_start_uncertainty
- 0.6
- Geologic timespan.time_end
- 66.0
- Geologic timespan.image_map
- Mollweide Paleographic Map of Earth, 105 Ma (Albian Age).png
- Geologic timespan.caption_map
- A map of Earth as it appeared 105 million years ago during the Early Cretaceous Epoch (Albian Age)
- Geologic timespan.timeline
- Cretaceous
- Geologic timespan.name_formality
- Formal
- Geologic timespan.celestial_body
- Earth
- Geologic timespan.usage
Article
19 sectionsContents
- Etymology and history
- Geology
- Subdivisions
- Boundaries
- Geologic formations
- Europe
- North America
- Paleogeography
- Climate
- Flora
- Terrestrial fauna
- Rhynchocephalians
- Choristodera
- Marine fauna
- See also
- References
- Citations
- Bibliography
- External links
The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 Ma (million years ago). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ninth and longest geological period of the entire Phanerozoic. The name is derived from the Latin , 'chalk', which is abundant in deposits from the latter half of the period. It is usually abbreviated K, for its German translation .
The Cretaceous was a period with a relatively warm climate, resulting in high eustatic sea levels that created numerous shallow inland seas. These oceans and seas were populated with now-extinct marine reptiles, ammonites and rudists; while on land, dinosaurs continued to dominate. The world was largely ice-free – although there is some evidence of brief periods of glaciation during the cooler first half – and forests extended to the poles.