The Paleozoic era's Silurian period saw animals and plants finally emerge on land. But first there was a period of biological regrouping following the disastrous climax to the Ordovician.

3 min read The Carboniferous period, part of the late Paleozoic era, takes its name from large underground coal deposits that date to it. Formed from prehistoric vegetation, the majority of these ...

The largest extinction events define a change in era. The end of the Paleozoic and beginning of the Mesozoic 251 million years ago marks the largest mass extinction in the history of the planet, which ...