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Vinony

Cretaceous

proper noun

  1. the last period of the Mesozoic era
L1327534 on Wikidata ↗

adjective

  1. chalky
L335714 on Wikidata ↗
  1. geological period following the Jurassic and preceding the Paleogene
L749453 on Wikidata ↗

Wiktionary

Pronunciation: /kɹəˈteɪ.ʃəs/

adj

Etymology: From Latin cretaceus (“chalky”), from Latin creta.

  1. Of or relating to chalk.
  2. Consisting of chalk.

name

Etymology: Specific use of cretaceous.

  1. The geologic period within the Mesozoic era that comprises lower and upper epochs from about 146 to 66 million years ago.

    “As with the Lejeuneaceae, this pattern of massive speciation appears to be correlated with the Cretaceous explosion of the angiosperms and the simultaneous creation of a host of new microenvironments, differing in humidity, light intensity, texture, etc.”

    “Fossils are particularly well described from the Carboniferous, Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods and have been found in the USA, England, Russia, Lebanon and Germany. Sites such as Lyme Regis in Dorset have particularly yielded number of Jurassic “squid” ink sacs and nodules (Doguzhaeva et al. 2004).”