During the Permian, all the Earth's major land masses except portions of East Asia were collected into a single landmass known as Pangea?. Pangea? straddled the equator. Deserts seem to have been widespread in Pangea?. |
During the Permian, all the Earth's major land masses except portions of East Asia were collected into a single landmass known as Pangea?. Pangea? straddled the equator. Deserts seem to have been widespread in Pangea?. |
The Permian is usually broken into Lower and Upper subdivisions. The Faunal stages from youngest to oldest are:
Changxingian/Lopingian?/Djulfian?/Ochoan?/Dewey? Lake (Zechstein) Wujiapingian/Lopingian?/Dorashamian?/Ochoan?/Longtanian?/Rustler?/Salado?/Castile? (Zechstein) Capitanian/Guadelupian?/Kazanian? (Zechstein) Wordian/Guadelupian?/Kazanian? (Zechstein) Roadian/Ufimian?/Guadelupian? (Zechstein) Kungurian/Irenian?/Filippovian?/Leonard? (Rotliegendes) Artinskian/Baigendzinian?/Aktastinian? (Rotliegendes) Sakmarian/Sterlitamakian?/Tastubian?/Leonard?/Wolfcamp? (Rotliegendes) Asselian/Krumaian?/Uskalikian?/Surenian?/Wolfcamp? (Rotliegendes)
Sea levels in the Permian were low and near shore environments were limited by the collection of almost all major landmasses into a single continent -- Pangea?. One continent -- even a large continent -- has less shoreline than six to eight smaller ones. The Permian ended with the most extensive extinction event recorded in paleontology. 90%-95% of marine species became extinct. There is very modest evidence that the extinction was caused by weather changes due to impact by a large meteorite. Land life in the Permian included diverse plants, large amphibians and large reptiles including the ancestors of the dinosaurs. The first modern trees -- conifers -- appeared in the Permian. Permian marine deposits are rich in mollusks, echinoderms and brachiopods. The last trilobites died out before the end of the Permian.
During the Permian, all the Earth's major land masses except portions of East Asia were collected into a single landmass known as Pangea?. Pangea? straddled the equator. Deserts seem to have been widespread in Pangea?.