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Timeline of evolution
This timeline of the evolution of life outlines the major events in the development of life on the planet Earth. Dates given are estimates based on scientific evidence.
In biology, evolution is the process by which populations of organisms acquire and pass on novel traits from generation to generation. Its occurrence over large stretches of time explains the origin of new species and ultimately the vast diversity of the biological world. Contemporary species are related to each other through common descent, products of evolution and speciation over billions of years. The basic timeline is a 4600 million year old Earth with: 4000 my (million years) of simple cells; 3000 my of photosynthesis; 2000 my of complex cells; 1000 my of multicellular life; 600 my of simple animals; 500 my of fish and proto-amphibians; 475 my of land plants; 400 my of insects and seeds; 360 my of amphibians; 300 my of reptiles; 200 my of mammals; 150 my of birds; 100 my of flowers; and 65 my since the non-avian dinosaurs died out.
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Plants & Animals News
October 29, 2026
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Oct. 16, 2026 Stanford scientists have developed a revolutionary microscope that reveals the hidden inner workings of living cells in real time, without the fluorescent labels that can interfere with observations. The breakthrough could provide new insights into ...
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Oct. 15, 2026 Scientists have discovered a potential new weapon against a devastating fungus that threatens rice, wheat, and barley worldwide. By engineering a special type of plant immune receptor, researchers ...
Oct. 14, 2026 Two unusually long-legged cats have helped scientists uncover the first genetically confirmed cases of Marfan syndrome in domestic felines. Researchers at Cornell University discovered that the ...
Oct. 13, 2026 Scientists have traced the development of a mouse embryo from its first two cells to the formation of organs, using a remarkable DNA recording system that reveals the family history of individual cells. Their findings uncover how different cell ...
Oct. 12, 2026 Scientists may have solved a 2.3-billion-year-old mystery about how Earth maintained enough oxygen to support life. Ancient rocks reveal that phosphorus recycling in the oceans created a ...
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Oct. 8, 2026 A brilliant yellow coral discovered off Costa Rica proved so unusual that scientists had to create an entirely new family to classify it. The meter-tall colonies rise from seafloors covered in brittle stars, inspiring the Tolkien-inspired name ...
Latest Headlines
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Oct. 28, 2026 Researchers have discovered a surprising hidden ability in Europe's familiar black-and-yellow fire salamanders: they glow green and cyan under ultraviolet light. The mysterious fluorescence comes ...
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Oct. 27, 2026 Scientists have discovered that spiders may sleep in ways surprisingly similar to humans, complete with distinct sleep stages and a dream-like REM state. Researchers at the University of Bonn studied ...
Oct. 26, 2026 Scientists have discovered a giant new fungus in China that grows up to 20 inches tall and weighs nearly five pounds, making it the largest known of ...
Oct. 25, 2026 Millions of years after animals first conquered land, some took an extraordinary evolutionary U-turn and returned to the water. Using machine learning and thousands of fossil measurements, Yale ...
Oct. 25, 2026 For nearly a century, people in distant parts of the world have reported a bizarre experience after eating certain wild mushrooms: seeing dozens or even hundreds of tiny, colorful humans moving ...
Oct. 24, 2026 Scientists have proposed a way to detect “mirror life,” a hypothetical form of life that could pose serious risks to humans, animals, and ...
Oct. 24, 2026 Tiny snakes in Southeast Asia have mastered an extraordinary escape technique: rolling across the ground at speeds up to four times faster than ordinary slithering. Scientists discovered that dwarf ...
Oct. 23, 2026 A 150-million-year-old fossil discovered in China reveals a bizarre early bird with sharp teeth, a dinosaur-like claw, and a body built for life on the ground rather than flight. Scientists believe ...
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