readx;? The Cenozoic Era (about 66 million years ago) was divided into the Tertiary and Quaternary periods. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 The Tertiary is divided into Paleogene and Neogene. The Paleogene is divided into the Paleocene, the Eocene, and the Oligocene, and the Neogene is divided into the Miocene and the Pliocene. The Quaternary is divided into the Pleistocene and Holocene.

Paleocene (c. 66 million years ago - 56 million years ago)

Eocene (c. 56 million years ago - 34 million years ago)

Oligocene (about 34 million years ago - 23 million years ago)

Miocene (ca. 23 million years ago - 5.33 million years ago)

Pliocene (ca. 5.33 million years ago - 2.59 million years ago)

Pleistocene (about 2.59 million years ago - 11,700 years ago)

Holocene (about 11,700 years ago)

At the beginning of the Cenozoic Era~, the ancient Eurasian continent was smaller than the modern one; ancient China and ancient India were separated by the ancient Mediterranean, ancient Turkey and ancient Persia were islands in the ancient Mediterranean, and these land masses had not yet been connected with the ancient Eurasian continent; the Red Sea had not yet been formed, and the ancient Arabian Peninsula was a corner of ancient Africa; ancient South America and ancient North America were far apart, and ancient North America was close to the ancient Eurasian continent, and sometimes connected.

After the Cenozoic Era ~ began, each land mass on the surface rose and fell, constantly splitting, drifting slowly, colliding and joining, and gradually formed today's sea and land distribution.

During the Cenozoic Era, the Earth's appearance gradually approached that of the modern era, and the vegetation zones became more and more distinct, and mammals, birds, bony fish, and insects ruled the earth together. The Cenozoic is characterized by a high degree of exuberance of mammals and angiosperms.

Angiosperms flourished during the Cenozoic. Except for the pine and cypress, which still occupies an important position, the rest of the gymnosperms tend to decline. Ferns have also been greatly reduced and their distribution is mostly confined to warmer regions. Among them, angiosperms have occupied the dominant position on the earth as early as the late White Age. However, gymnosperms have not retired from the stage of history, and the forests in the cold zone are now mostly occupied by gymnosperms (such as pines and cypresses).

Due to the development of a large number of nectar feeding species in the late White Period, a new direction of development was found, and many new plants also formed a good symbiotic system with insects, so that without insects, they could not reproduce offspring and produce seeds, such as various fruit trees. With the prosperity of mammal and bird families, insects such as trichophalics, lice, and fleas that live on ectoparasitism also emerged. In this way, a colorful insect world is gradually formed.

In the Tertiary period, invertebrates were mainly bivalves, gastropods, foraminifera, hexamicus corals, sea urchins, bryozoans, and mesomorphs. The radiolaria of protozoa flourished in the Tertiary period.

In the early part of the Tertiary period, ancient, primitive mammals still lived. All mammals before the Paleogene were small, a small predator about 12 centimeters in length, similar to the size of a mouse. As the Cenozoic Era began, dinosaurs declined, allowing mammals to occupy more ecological niches and rapidly evolve into thousands of different species with a rich diversity. The first primates were very small, threatened by species such as dinosaurs, and all the big ones were eaten. Later, after the impact of the impact event, the survivors were all small lower primates such as the rabbit monkey family. The lower primates also began to diversify rapidly.

Primates are divided into the suborder Protomonkey (lower primates) and the apeid suborder (higher primates).

The protomonkey suborder is divided into lemur suborder and tarsier suborder. Lemur suborders are divided into the earliest free monkey superfamily, lemur superfamily and thin monkey superfamily. The apes suborder is divided into the broad-nosed monkey suborder and the narrow-nosed monkey suborder. The broad-nosed monkey suborder is divided into capuchin superfamily, marmoset superfamily and jumping monkey superfamily. The narrow-nosed monkey suborder is divided into the family Proto-Superior Apeidae, the General Family of Monkeys, and the General Family of Hominids. The Broad-nosed Monkey suborder (also known as the New World monkey) lives mainly in the Americas. The narrow-nosed monkey suborder (also known as Old World monkeys) is mainly found in Eurasia and Africa. The monkey family is the largest family of primates and is divided into 2 subfamilies: the monkey subfamily (macaque subfamily) and the colobus macaque subfamily. It is found in Africa and Asia.

The general family of hominids includes humans and true apes, which are characterized by a highly developed brain and the absence of a tail.

The extant members of the family Hominidae can be divided into gibbons, orangutans, and hominidae, while the prehistoric members also include the original Proto-Consulid ape, and may also include the mountain ape family and the upper ape family, and some early members of the orangutan family are often listed separately as forest australopithecus.

Gibbons are mainly distributed in Southeast Asia, inhabiting tropical rainforests and subtropical monsoon forests, arboreal, and in groups, each group includes 1 pair of males and females and their offspring, generally no more than 5~6 individuals. The diet is mainly berries, but it also eats leaves, small birds, bird eggs, or insects. 1 litter per litter.

The orangutan family is found in Africa and Southeast Asia. Orangutans are now found only in the tropical rainforests of northern Sumatra and the lowlands and mountains of Borneo, where they are scarce. Gorillas are distributed in equatorial Africa and are the largest among primates, standing 1.3~1.8 meters tall, with females weighing 70~120 kg and males weighing kg. The genus Chimpanzee, which includes bonobos and chimpanzees, is found in the tropical rainforests of central Africa, lives in groups, can use simple tools, and is the most intelligent animal known after humans, and its behavior and social behavior are more similar to humans, which is of great significance in anthropological research.

There is only one genus and one species in the family of Homo, namely Homo sapiens (modern humans). It is found on all continents of the world, and the early types are only found in the warm regions of Asia, Africa, and Europe. Walking upright, arms no more than knees, degeneration of body hair, division of hands and feet, shallow and stout mandibles, degeneration of canines and lower first premolars, thick enamel, abrasion of the three molars is very different, the brain is extremely developed, there is language and labor, and there is social and class character.

During the Paleocene, India, along with Australia, was also separated from Antarctica and gradually drifted northward. The tip of Antarctica is gradually connected to South America. Today, the two continents are bordered by only one Drake Passage. Early bats and whales appeared 50 million years ago. In the late Paleocene, higher primates have emerged, and higher primates originated from primitive lemurs in Africa.

In the Eocene, India and Australia united to form a superplate and washed towards the Eurasian plate, so the ancient Mediterranean disappeared and the Tibetan Plateau rose. By 40 million years ago, almost all the orders under the mammalian have appeared.

Lemurs among primates continued to develop during the Eocene, and their wide range was found in Asia, North America, and Europe. Lemurs are now found only on the islands of Madagascar and the Comoros. Tarsiers appeared in Europe, Asia, North America and other places in the Eocene, and are now distributed on some islands in Southeast Asia. The ape is a very small primate weighing only about 100 grams, and is the earliest fossil of a higher primate to be discovered.

The next chapter introduces the earliest ancestors of mankind.