Ordovician period
485 million - 444 million years ago
What was the world like?
Fun facts
References
Major event
What was the world like?
This time is classified by a warm climate with high sea levels. This made way for a large increase in marine species. The greenhouse effect caused high temperatures with the high amount of atmospheric CO2. Marine life thrived during this time, the incredible biodiversity consisted of early coral reefs, trilobites, brachiopods, mollusks, and jawless fish. The first land plants such as mosses began spawning during this time. By the end of the period the world began to cool and experience an ice age killing 86% of marine species.
Major event: Great Ordovician Biodiversity event (gobe)
While this period also had the Ordovician Silurian Extinction Event, I thought it would be more interesting to research the explosion of life that occured during this period. This period had a dramatic increase in marine species including the diversification of existising marine groups. Marine ecosystems began to gain more structure with more complex foodwebs. Geologists who conducted research on the event, suggest diversifications of differernt groups occurred at differernt times. The three phases consist of the planktonic, level bottom benthic, and reef communities. The Great Ordovician Biodiversity Event had lasting effects on Earth since many animal groups still exist blossomed at this time.
Fun facts
- Cephalopods, most similar to modern squid, were the top predators. - Most of the land made up a supercontinent called Gondwana which was around the South Pole. - Land was first colonized at this time with nonvascular plants. - The presence of plants is what contributed to the cooling since photosynthesis uses CO2. - Sea levels at this time were the highest in history about 600 meters higher than today.
References
Deng, Y., Fan, J., Zhang, S., Fang, X., Chen, Z., Shi, Y., Wang, H., Wang, X., Yang, J., Hou, X., Wang, Y., Zhang, Y., Chen, Q., Yang, A., Fan, R., Dong, S., Xu, H., & Shen, S. (2021). Timing and patterns of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event and Late Ordovician mass extinction: Perspectives from South China. Earth-Science Reviews, 220, Article 103743. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2021.103743 Edwards, C. T., Saltzman, M. R., Royer, D. L., & Fike, D. A. (2017). Oxygenation as a driver of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event. Nature Geoscience, 10(12), 925–929. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-017-0006-3 Gradstein, F., Ogg, J. G., Schmitz, M. D., & Ogg, G. M. (Eds.). (2012). The geologic time scale 2012. Elsevier. Servais, T., & Harper, D. A. T. (2018). The Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (GOBE): definition, concept and duration. Lethaia, 51(2), 151–164. https://doi.org/10.1111/let.12259
Mini-research project: Geological time
Kayleigh Assif
Created on February 21, 2026
Start designing with a free template
Discover more than 1500 professional designs like these:
View
Project Roadmap Timeline
View
Step-by-Step Timeline: How to Develop an Idea
View
Artificial Intelligence History Timeline
View
Practical Timeline
View
Timeline video mobile
View
History Timeline
View
Education Timeline
Explore all templates
Transcript
Ordovician period
485 million - 444 million years ago
What was the world like?
Fun facts
References
Major event
What was the world like?
This time is classified by a warm climate with high sea levels. This made way for a large increase in marine species. The greenhouse effect caused high temperatures with the high amount of atmospheric CO2. Marine life thrived during this time, the incredible biodiversity consisted of early coral reefs, trilobites, brachiopods, mollusks, and jawless fish. The first land plants such as mosses began spawning during this time. By the end of the period the world began to cool and experience an ice age killing 86% of marine species.
Major event: Great Ordovician Biodiversity event (gobe)
While this period also had the Ordovician Silurian Extinction Event, I thought it would be more interesting to research the explosion of life that occured during this period. This period had a dramatic increase in marine species including the diversification of existising marine groups. Marine ecosystems began to gain more structure with more complex foodwebs. Geologists who conducted research on the event, suggest diversifications of differernt groups occurred at differernt times. The three phases consist of the planktonic, level bottom benthic, and reef communities. The Great Ordovician Biodiversity Event had lasting effects on Earth since many animal groups still exist blossomed at this time.
Fun facts
- Cephalopods, most similar to modern squid, were the top predators. - Most of the land made up a supercontinent called Gondwana which was around the South Pole. - Land was first colonized at this time with nonvascular plants. - The presence of plants is what contributed to the cooling since photosynthesis uses CO2. - Sea levels at this time were the highest in history about 600 meters higher than today.
References
Deng, Y., Fan, J., Zhang, S., Fang, X., Chen, Z., Shi, Y., Wang, H., Wang, X., Yang, J., Hou, X., Wang, Y., Zhang, Y., Chen, Q., Yang, A., Fan, R., Dong, S., Xu, H., & Shen, S. (2021). Timing and patterns of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event and Late Ordovician mass extinction: Perspectives from South China. Earth-Science Reviews, 220, Article 103743. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2021.103743 Edwards, C. T., Saltzman, M. R., Royer, D. L., & Fike, D. A. (2017). Oxygenation as a driver of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event. Nature Geoscience, 10(12), 925–929. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-017-0006-3 Gradstein, F., Ogg, J. G., Schmitz, M. D., & Ogg, G. M. (Eds.). (2012). The geologic time scale 2012. Elsevier. Servais, T., & Harper, D. A. T. (2018). The Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (GOBE): definition, concept and duration. Lethaia, 51(2), 151–164. https://doi.org/10.1111/let.12259