Capitanian

The Capitanian is a special time period in Earth's history, part of what scientists call the geologic timescale. It was the last part of the Guadalupian Epoch, which is a section of the Permian period. The Capitanian happened between 264.28 and 259.51 million years ago. Before this time came the Wordian, and after it came the Wuchiapingian.

During the Capitanian, a big loss of many plant and animal types happened in the oceans. Scientists think this happened because of very low amounts of oxygen and changes in the water that made it hard for life to survive. These changes might have been caused by huge volcanic eruptions that created something called the Emeishan Traps. This loss of life may be connected to an even bigger event called the Permian–Triassic extinction, which happened about 10 million years later.

Stratigraphy

The Capitanian Stage was first described by a scientist in 1904. It got its name from a big reef called the Capitan Reef located in the Guadalupe Mountains in Texas, United States. For many years, this stage was only used in the southern US, but in 2001, it became part of the worldwide timeline used by scientists.

The start of the Capitanian is marked by the first appearance of a special type of tiny fossil called a conodont. Scientists use these fossils to help figure out how old rocks are. The end of the Capitanian is marked by the appearance of another kind of conodont fossil. During this time, important rock layers were formed in Europe and other places around the world.

Capitanian life

Main page: Category:Capitanian life

After a time when many land animals disappeared, life on Earth grew again during the Capitanian. This growth happened because new types of animals filled places left empty by those that were lost. Later, another event caused the number of different animals to drop again.

Notable formations

One important rock formation from this time is the Capitan Formation, found in New Mexico and Texas, USA.

Events

Carbon in the stones formed from ancient seas during the Capitanian time changed in a way that shows the Earth got cooler. This cooling might have caused some sea creatures that liked warm water, such as certain shell animals and corals, to disappear.