CHAPTER X: AIR, WATER AND SOIL RESOURCES

Air as a Natural Resource

Introduction to air as a Natural Resource:

Air is a wonderful and precious natural resource gifted by the almighty. It is the main
natural source, which helps all life to sustain on this Mother Earth. The Earth’s
atmosphere is made up of different gases that keep plants, animals and people alive.
The composition of air in the atmosphere is – Nitrogen-78.09percentage, Oxygen –
20.94%, Argon – 0.03%, Carbon dioxide 0.03%, Water vapor, Helium, Krypton, and
Xenon etc. Let us discuss the importance of air being a natural resource.

Importance of Air, which is a Natural Resource

The air we breathe in keeps us alive, as well as performs many other functions. Adults
breathe in about 10 – 20 cubic meter of air every day. Oxygen is the most important gas
of air and an average human being needs 600 quarts of Oxygen daily. The Oxygen-
Carbon dioxide cycle is of fundamental importance to animal-plant relationships. The
Oxygen is produced by Plant Photosynthesis which has been taking place for millions of
years. Plants produce its food by the help of carbon dioxide given out by human beings.
In addition to this, air serves a number of other functions like generating power through
wind mills, suspends clouds and helps in raining; Compressed air is used in many
industries and automobiles etc.
This precious natural resource in recent time has been polluted due to various reasons.
The air pollution has risen due to the emission of smoke, sulphur dioxide, Nitrogen
oxides, carbon monoxides etc. Acute air pollution occurs when there is a dispersal of
pollutants in the atmospheres.

Main Causes for Air Pollution

The main causes for air pollution are:
 Smoke emitted from industries and vehicles
 De Forestation
 Higher population
 Seasonal Influence
 Smoke and ash due to Volcanic eruption
It is obvious that Pollution in Air has an adverse effect upon the health of all living
beings. Acidity of rain water and the deposition of solids on the leaves of the plants are
also the effects of air pollution. It is our duty to preserve air which is an important natural
resource. Regular Emission tests of vehicles, planting of trees in affected areas etc.  will
help us to control air pollution to an extent. Without air there would not be any survival.

Water resources

            Water is an inexhaustible natural resource, which is liquid above zero degree
and below 100 degree. The source of water availability is rainfall. It is not uniform over
the land. 50 % of population of the world lives in semi-arid and arid regions which are
not connected with any river or canal system. A lot of energy, time and effects are spent
by the people of these areas in obtaining water. Let us see about the water resource
education.
Water Resource Education:
Sources of the water resource education:
 Surface water
 Under river flow
 Ground water
Surface water:
 The rain water that falls on the earth and remains on the surface, forms the
source of all surface water.
 The most important sources of surface water are rivers, lakes, ponds and storage
reservoirs.
 Surface water contains certain impurities.
 Surface water depends on some common factors.
 Some common large impacts are made by human activities.
Under river flow:
 By the river water, the total amount of water passed downstream to under rocks.
 Under river flow is present in hyporheic zone.
 Dynamic interface are created by hyporheic zone between surface water and
true ground-water.
Ground water:
 Ground water is also called as sub-surface water.
 The rain water that percolates into the soil and flows or collects underground is
the source of water supply.
 This is called sub-surface or ground water.
 The under surface water is brought on the surface by hand pumps, mechanical
pumps and electrical motor pumps.
 Generally, ground water is clear and colorless, free from bacteria and other living
organisms but contains dissolved inorganic salts which may be harmful.
 When ground water appears at the surface, springs are formed.
 Springs are good source of water supply for small towns situated near hills.
 It is fresh water presented in the pore space of soil and rocks.
 Sometimes it creates the fossil water.
SOIL RESOURCES
Edaphic resources refer to soil resources. Due to varying temperature, rainfall,
topographical characters in different parts of world, the rocks weather differently.
Further, the rocks themselves are of varying chemical composition. Due to this varying
types of soils are formed.
Soils are the basis of biosphere, because soils nourish and support plant growth
(primary producers) and all the animals depend directly on plants as primary consumers
or as secondary consumers. Soils are most important natural resource of world, for
agricultural production, forest wealth.
Different types of soils like alluvial soil, coastal soil, sandy soil, sand clay soil, clay loam
soil, clayey soil, laterite soil, peat soil, forest soil, glacial soil are found in different parts
of the globe.

Natural restoration of soil fertility

Nature restores soil fertility through the following processes:
1) Weathering of rocks.
2) Earthworms and rodents help bring fresh subsoil to the surface by burrowing.
3) Release of minerals by decay of faller leaves, twigs and dead bodies of animals and
plants.
4) Biological fixation of nitrogen.
5) Rain brings down nitrogen compounds formed in air.

Conservation of soil
Preservation of topsoil is the most important step in soil conservation. This is achieved
by 2 ways. They are:
i) Restoration of fertility
ii) Prevention of erosion.

Restoration of fertility
The fertility of the topsoil can be restored by taking the following measures.
a) Regular use of manures and fertilizers can replenish the minerals used by the crops.
Green manuring can also be done.
b) Crop rotation should be practiced
c) New techniques of applying water beneath the soil is being developed to prevent
salinization of soil and depletion and to conserve water.
d) Nitrogen fixing organisms can be inoculated into the soil.
e) The practice of leaving the land fallow should be practiced.

Prevention of erosion
Erosion of soil can be due to action of water or air.
Erosion of soil by water can be prevented by
a) Checking of overgrazing and stopping the cutting down of forests.
b) Terracing of sloping lands reduces the speed of water and prevents soil erosion.
c) Bunds around the fields checks the erosion of the soil.
d) Irrigation channels around the fields should be designed to carry water at a slow
speed and fast flowing water tends to carry away the topsoil.
e) Intensive cropping prevents soil erosion.
f) Contour ploughing checks soil erosion by water.
g) Drainage canals prevent soil erosion.
Erosion of soil by wind can be prevented by having tree belts around fields which act as
wind breakers. Planting of grass also prevents erosion
Tree belts and grass beds check the advancement of deserts towards the fertile land.
The richness in our edaphic resources is testified in Gangetic belt - which has been seat
of human civilization for the past 5000 years. It is one of the few places where earliest
human settlement was recorded.
Our country is bestowed with some of the best soil resources. However, the types of
soil, and their fertility vary widely across the country.
The broad distribution of soils in our country is as follows.
Alluvial Soils
Mainly distributed in Gangetic plains, north eastern states, West Bengal, U.P, Orissa,
parts of TamilNadu, Kerala, Gujarat, Punjab and Haryana.
Alluvial soils can be a deltaic alluvium (these soils are due to transported silt across the
rivers. They are mainly found in river basins or calcareous alluvium or coastal alluvium
(in coasts).
Black Soil
Mainly distributed in Maharastra, Madhya Pradesh, parts of Gujarat, Andhra, Tamil
Nadu and Karnataka.
They are the products of weathering of deccan trap. They can be deep black soils, clay
loam soils, sandy clay soils.
Red Soils
Mainly distributed in TamilNadu, South Karnataka, Goa, SE Maharastra, Eastern
Andhra, parts of Orissa.
They are porous soils. They can be red sandy, red loamy, red clayey type of soils.
Laterite Soils
They are mainly distributed in Kerala, hilly region of Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh,
Orissa, and Maharastra.
They are gravelly smooth and highly porous in characters.
Desert Soils
They are mainly distributed in Rajastan, parts of Gujarat, Punjab and Haryana.
Problem Soils
They are spread over in most states. They can be acid soils (where pH is in the range of
3.5 to 6.5) found in coastal and hilly tracts or highly leached region or saline /alkali soils
(where pH is 7.5 to 9.5) found in any clay rich poor drained soils especially with high
sodium salts.
Out of these, the fertility of black soils, alluvial soils is medium to high but black soils
suffer poor drainage. Red and laterite soils are well drained but poor in fertility. Desert
soils are poor in fertility. Problematic soils suffer due to drainage, fertility as well as pH
related issues.
In a broad sense, the rich source of agricultural production is found in alluvial soil
regions (especially deltaic alluvial soils) as well as black soil regions - for rainfed
situations. Red, laterite soils as well as alluvial soils are suitable for irrigation.
The edaphic resources are put to maximum use in our country. Due to enormous
population pressure, the lands are put to maximum utility in order to achieve higher
agricultural production.
Out of 142 million hectares of land, nearly 43 million hectares of land is put to use more
rigorously to grow two crops in a year. Remaining land can also be used to grow more
crops. But, adverse rainfall distribution will not permit crops two crops in all the area.
Natural restoration of soil fertility
Nature restores soil fertility through the following processes:
1) Weathering of rocks.
2) Earthworms and rodents help bring fresh subsoil to the surface by burrowing.
3) Release of minerals by decay of faller leaves, twigs and dead bodies of animals and
plants.
4) Biological fixation of nitrogen.
5) Rain brings down nitrogen compounds formed in air.
Conservation of soil
Preservation of topsoil is the most important step in soil conservation. This is achieved
by 2 ways. They are:
1) Restoration of fertility
2) Prevention of erosion.
Restoration of fertility
The fertility of the topsoil can be restored by taking the following measures.
a) Regular use of manures and fertilizers can replenish the minerals used by the crops.
Green manuring can also be done.
b) Crop rotation should be practiced
c) New techniques of applying water beneath the soil is being developed to prevent
salinization of soil and depletion and to conserve water.
d) Nitrogen fixing organisms can be inoculated into the soil.
e) The practice of leaving the land fallow should be practiced.
Prevention of erosion
Erosion of soil can be due to action of water or air.
Erosion of soil by water can be prevented by
i) Checking of overgrazing and stopping the cutting down of forests.
ii) Terracing of sloping lands reduces the speed of water and prevents soil erosion.
iii) Bunds around the fields checks the erosion of the soil.
iv) Irrigation channels around the fields should be designed to carry water at a slow
speed and fast flowing water tends to carry away the topsoil.
v) Intensive cropping prevents soil erosion.
vi) Contour ploughing checks soil erosion by water.
vii) Drainage canals prevent soil erosion.
Erosion of soil by wind can be prevented by having tree belts around fields which act as
wind breakers. Planting of grass also prevents erosion
Tree belts and grass beds check the advancement of deserts towards the fertile land.
 CHAPTER VI: OTHER LEVEL OF NATURAL SYSTEM

Introduction to finding community structure

     Community ecology deals with the groups of different kinds of population in the area. 
In nature, different kinds oif organisms grow in association with each other.   A group of
several species (plants or animals) living together with mutual tolerance and beneficial
interactions in a natural area is known as a community or more appropriately biotic
community.  In a community, organisms share the same habitat growing in an uniform
environment.  A forest, a grassland, a desert, or a pond are natural communities. 
By definition, a community must include only living entities of the area.  If non-living
(abiotic) factors together with the living (biotic) entities are also considered, then we
would be dealing with an ecosystem rather than a community. 
      The concept of community is by no means so recent, and it may be traced back to
the time of Theophrastus, who had recognised the existence of plant communities or
associations of species in different environmental areas.  Many centuries later,
Grisebach recognised the plant formation as an important unit of vegetation. 
Thereafter Edward Forbes, while studying the molluscs of  Aegean Sea, noticed for the
first time that in different areas there might be distinguished different types of
assemblages of species.  It was indeed in the later part of the 19th century that
authentic studies on the term biocoenosis for the association of organisms in an
oyster-bed community.  In 1902, Schroter and Kirchner introduced the term synecology
referring to plant species on the on ocean bottom as an association or community.

Characteristics of a community: Like a population, a community too has its own

characteristics, which are not shown by its individual component species.  These
characteristics which have meaning only with reference to community level of
organisation, are as follows: Species diversity, Growth form and structure,
Dominance, Succession, Trophic structure, Composition, Structure, Origin and
development.

Community Structure
     The communities exhibit a structure or recognizable pattern in the spatial
arrangement of their members.  Thus structurally, a community may be divided
horizontally into 'subcommunities', which are units of homogenous life-form and
ecological relation.  This horizontal, division constitutes the zonation in the community. 
Example, zonation of different distinct vegetational types on a mountain.  In shallow
ponds zonation is very little.  However, in deep ponds and lakes, there may be
recognised three zones, viz, littoral zone, limnetic zone and profundal zone.  In each
zone, organisms differ from each other.

                                 

     Another aspect of structure that is more common is stratification which involves
vertical rather than horizonatal changes within the community.  In each horizontal zone,
there may be recognised distinct vertical storeys.  Sometimes the stratification is very
complex where community possesses a number of vertical layers of species, each
made up of a characteristic growth form. In grassland communities, there is a
subterranean floor, containing basal portions of the vegetation such as rhizomes of
grass covered by litter and debris of plants as well as animals, and herbaceous
substratum consisting of upper parts of the grasses and herbs with a characteristic
fauna.  However, stratification in a forest community is most complicated where as
many as five vertical sub divisions may be recognized.  These vertical subdivisions are ;
subterranean subdivision, forest floor, herbaceous vegetation, shrubs and 
trees.  In some tropical rain forests, there may be as many as eight vertical strata. 
Thus, based upon the light and relative humidity requirements, we find stratification in
above ground parts.  Similar stratification may also be found in the underground parts,
roots, rhizome or other structures below the soil.
      Each community has a definite structure.  It is formed of three groups of organisms,
namely producers, consumers and decomposers.
 1. Producers:  The green plants constitute the producers.  They are
autotrophs.  They can synthesize starch by photosynthesis utilizing
chlorophyll, CO2, water, minerals and solar energy. The producers form the
main source of energy for the other components of the community.  Eg.
Plants, Phytoplankton, etc.
2. Consumers : Consumers are the heterotrophs.  They cannot produce food,
utilizing abiotic factors.  But they depend on the produceers and other
organisms of the community for their food.  Consumers are of two types,
namely herbivores and carnivores.   Herbivores are animals which eat the
producers. They are also called as primary consumers.  Carnivores are
animals which eat other animals for their food.  These are also called
secondary consumers.  Carnivores are further sub-divided into primary
carnivores, secondary carnivores and tertiary carnivores.
3. Decomposers: Decomposers include micro-organisms like bacteria and
fungi.  They decompose the dead bodies of plants and animals of the
community and convert them into micro and macro nutrients.  These nutrients
are again utilized by plants for photosynthesis.

Characters Used in Community Structure

     Each community is characterised by its species diversity, growth forms and
structure, dominance, successional trend etc.  To study the details of these aspects of
any community there are taken into consideration a number of characters or
parameters.  These are then used to express the characteristics of a community.  For
instance, if we say that this particular species is dominant in the community, what may
be the possible characters on the basis of which such a conclusion can be drawn. 
      These various characters used for such purposes are broadly classified into two
major categories:  Analytical characters - These are generally expressed in terms of
5-point scale and Synthetic chracters are actually computed from analytical
characters.

Introduction to organisms and populations:

       Living component of the environment at individual level is called as the organisms.
Ecology at the organisms level is essentially physiological ecology which reveals the
fact that how different organisms are adapted to their environments in terms of not only
survival but also reproduction. The organisms are smallest level of ecological hierarchy.
Populations are defined as the sum of total of all individuals of a species in a specific
geographical area.
Living Organisms Cope with Environment:
    The following are the process of the living organisms cope with environment,
    1)      Regulation
    2)      Conform
    3)      Migration
    4)      Suspend
    5)      Adaptations
Regulation:
      Some organisms maintain homeostasis by physiological and behavioral means. All
birds and mammals and few lower vertebrate and invertebrate species are to maintain
homeostasis by thermoregulation and osmo-regulation.
Conform:
       Majority of animals and nearly all plants cannot maintain a constant internal
environment. Their body temperature is determined by ambient temperature. The
osmotic concentration of the body fluids change with that of ambient water osmotic
concentration.
Migration:
       The temporary movement of organisms from the stressful habitat to a more
hospitable area and return when favorable condition exists is called as migration. The
long distance migration is very common in birds.  
Suspend:
       Some bacteria, fungi and lower plants under unfavorable conditions slow down
metabolic rate and form a thick-walled spore to overcome stressful conditions.
Adaptation:
        Adaptation is any attribute of the organisms that enables the organisms to survive
and reproduce in its habitat. Over a long period of time many adaptations have evolved
and are incorporated in the gene and become heritable.

Population Growth:
         The size of populations depends on food availability, predation pressure and
weather, so size of the populations are not a static parameter. The population density
depends on few basic processes. The populations are depending on the birth rate and
death rate.  The population of the every country is measure by the population growth.
They are a) Natality b) Mortality c) immigration d) Emigration. There are two models of
population growth. They are 1) The exponential growth 2) Logistic growth. The
exponential or geometric growth is common where the resources are not limited. In the
logistic growth, the resources become limited at certain point of tome, so no populations
can grow exponentially.
Species is represented as basic unit of biological classification and is a rank under
taxonomy. The species are group of organisms which are capable of interbreeding and
also produce fertile offspring. The term species is grouped under single genus and each
species is related to other species within genus.
Taxonomically each species is specified with binomial name and consists of generic
and specific name. Example: In case of Boa constrictor represented as botanical name
and belongs to one member of five species of Boa genus.

Definition of Species
Biologists and taxonomists have proposed multiple definitions for the term species on
the basis of multiple features like
Typological species: Individual members of the species can confirm to fixed properties
such as rights of passage. The clusters are often associated with various phenotypes
with many specimens and help in differentiation of species.
Morphological species: Differences in a group of population on morphological basis.
Biological / Isolation species: Referred as interbreeding populations capable to
interbreed.
Biological / reproductive species: Organisms which are able to reproduce and able to
produce fertile offspring and can make hybrids of one sex.
Recognition species: Differentiated on the basis of shared reproductive system such as
mating behavior.
Mate-recognition species: Organisms capable to recognize one another as potent
mates.
Evolutionary / Darwinian species: Group of organisms which have a common ancestor
and able to integrate with other lineages
Phylogenetic: Shares a common ancestor.
Ecological species: Species which are adapted to resources and are referred as niche
in a particular environment.
Genetic species: Termed on the basis of DNA in individuals or populations.
Phenetic species: On the basis of phenotypes.
Microspecies: Organisms that reproduce irrespective of meiosis or fertilization as such
every generation looks identical to previous generation.
Cohesion species: Species of organisms which are inclusive population and have
potential for phenotypic cohesion.
Number of Species
Across the identified species eukaryotes the following number of species are identified
1.6 million, including:
297,326 plants, including: 15,000 mosses, 13,025 Ferns and horsetails, 980
gymnosperms, 258,650 angiosperms, 199,350 dicotyledons, 59,300 monocotyledons,
9,671 Red and green algae, 28,849 fungi and other non-animals which include 10,000
lichens, 16,000 mushrooms, 2,849 brown algae
and 1,250,000 animals, including: 1,203,375 invertebrates such as 950,000 insects,
81,000 mollusks, 40,000 crustaceans, 2,175 corals, 130,200 others, and 59,811
vertebrates including 29,300 fish, 6,199 amphibians, 8,240 reptiles, and 9,956 birds.
Introduction to Learning population parameters
The term population indicates a group of organisms belonging to the same species that
occur together in the same time and place. Population analysis is the study of biological
populations, with the specific intent of understanding which factors are most important in
determining population size.
Populations can change over time. They increase or decrease in size, and their change
in size can depend on a wide variety of factors.
Factors such as the per capita rates of birth and death, the population density, age
structure, and sex ratio all contribute to determine population size.
Parameters in Population
The number of organisms making up a population is never constant; it always changes
over time. The populations of some species change in predictable or cyclical ways,
whereas populations of other species frequently exhibit seemingly unpredictable and
noncyclic changes.
Fluctuations in population size may be caused by changes in the population’s
environment; for example, seasonal changes in temperature or moisture produce
seasonal fluctuations in population size. Resource limitations may produce density-
dependent reductions in the growth rate of a population, which, if the reduction is not
instantaneous, can result in oscillations in population size.
Interactions with other species also produce population fluctuations; mathematical
models of predator-prey systems typically produce oscillations in the abundance of both
predators and prey. Finally, natural or anthropogenic disturbances often reduce the size
of a population, which then either recovers its former abundance over time or declines
further to local (or global) extinction.
Time Scales of Population Fluctuations
Many species of animals, including numerous insects and several small vertebrates,
exhibit a more or less annual life cycle, characterized by increasing numbers and higher
levels of activity during the summer (or wet season) and by dormancy or decreasing
numbers during the winter (or dry season). Even highly mobile animals, such as birds,
exhibit a strong seasonal pattern of abundance.
Nonseasonal fluctuations are of two main types: those that exhibit more or less regular
cycles of abundance over several years and those that seem to fluctuate irregularly or
noncyclically.

GEOLOGICAL TIME
The history of earth can be divided into  a hierarchical set of divisions for  describing the
geologic time.Nicolaus Steno in 1669 described the Law of superimposition stating that
the older sediments will be deposited deeper in the earth's crust  than the newer ones,
so a  more deeper layer will be the older one.William Smith (1839) discovered that
different strata can be identified by the unique type of fossils found in them.Later Cuvier
and others showed that the ages of the fossils correspond to the age of the sediments
they are found in.
Thus a time scale could be identified with the data from y the strata of the earth
(stratigraphic representation )  became possible and time scale for the geological events
of the earth ,that is , the geological time could be mapped with conjectures of
evolution.This came to be known as the geological  time scale.  Arthur Holmes
proposed the first geological time scale in 1913 and  it was  calculated that the earth
was about 4 billion years old.
Methods for dating of geologic time:
 Radio Carbon Dating :
 Fission track Dating
In theses processes  radioactive elements and their half life periods are used  for
identification of age of fossils/rock.
Important definitions used in Geological  time
      Eon :     Consists of  Eras  and  time span is half a billion years or  more.
     Era  : An era extends for hundreds of millions of years and  is made of two or
more geological periods .
     Period :  a period lasts for tens of millions of years  and is the basic unit  of
geological time representing  a time when a single rock  system was formed
     Epoch : Lasts for several millions of years  ,it is the smallest division of the
geological time and is a division of the        geological time   period.
    Age : Unit  of time scale with certain features  from about a few milion years
top hundred million years like age of reptiles
Hierarchy    : Eon >era> period> epoch> ages
           

                                                   
(Stratigraphic  representation)                               Fossils: geological time

Geological Time: Precambrian and Phenerozoic Eons.

Geological time can be basically divided ito  eons,  Precambrian and Phenerozoic
eons.and it is based on fossil evidences along with closest approximations by dating
experiments.
THE PRECAMBRIAN EON :
It can be subdivided into Archean and Proterozoic eras each subdivided into  early,
middle and late stages.Some authors have added another era ,the Hadean era(4500-
3800 mya) before the Archean era.The Archean era lasted from 3800-2500 mya, the
Proterozoic era ranges from  2500 -543/540 mya  before present.
Major events:
  4000 - 3800 mya  upto  540 -543 mya.(mya=million tears ago).
 earth formed, life arose,first tectonic plates arose,and movement started.
 Eukaryotic cells evolved.
  Atmosphere gotr enriched with O2 .
 Just before the end of precambrian, complex multicellular organisms, including
first animals evolved
N.B- researchers have found eukaryotic fossils in China dating from before the
Cambrian Explosion  in Feb 1988.(Nature, Feb, 1998). So the exact date of
Cambrian Explosion remains uncertain

THE PHANEROZOIC  EON:

The majority of macroscopic organisms ,algal, fungal, plants and animals lived and this
eon coincides with the appearance of animals with external skeletons like the shell.It
consists of three major divisions, the Paleozoic era, Mesozoic era, and the Cenozoic
era.The word ' zoic' comes from the word Zoology/zoo meaning animals and 'paleo'
means primitive, 'Meso' means middle  while 'Ceno' means recent.
Major events
 Origin of diverse types of organisms
  development of vertebrates along with  invertebrates.
 periods marked by dominant animals of the concerned period
 Origin of modern organisms along with mammals and man.

Geological Time :paleozoic,and Mesozoic Eras

The  Phanerozoic eon can be divided into three eras ,namely the Paleozoic, Mesozoic
and Cenozoic eras.

PALEOZOIC ERA
This era extends just beyond the Pre-Cambrian / Cambrian transition about
540/570mya   to  about 248 mya   and consists of 6 periods,during this period the ozone
shield was formed .
1) Cambrian period: Lasted for about  78 to 85 million years and a great diversity of life
occured on earth called Cambrian explosion  where more than 900 species have been
recorded and all are marine with  Trilobites( Arthropoda,) as the dominant form,there
are Brachiopods, sponges, bivalves and gatropods(Mollusca) . Besides , there were
Echinoderms, Arthropods, (crustaceans),corals, Nautiloids etc. The word Cambrian has
originated from roman "Cambria" .  .B y the end of Cambrian ,50% of all animal families
went into extinction ,probably due to climatic changes like glaciation.
                        

                                        trilobite                                          
trilobite  fossil                              Brachiopod fossil                         Nautiloidea  Fossil
                                                                                             (Geological time scale)
2) Ordovician Period : lasted for about  57 to 62 million years but majority of Cambrian
fauna went extinction but land vertebrates emerged.
3) Silurian period :lasted about  30 million years and gave rise to first land plants and
animals.Eurypterids (extinct Arthropoda) flourished
4) Devonian period : Lasted for about 48 --58 millions of years, first flightless insects
were  evolved,marine and freshwater saw  emergence of fishes with armours .first
amphibians  also evolved.

                                                          

                           Coelacanth (Silurian fish) Connecting link (Geological time)

5)Carboniferous period :  Lasted for about  68 to 72 millions  of years and can be
divided into  Mississippian and Pennysylvanian
 epochs .It was marked by growth of dense forests of giant trees ,5-6ft wide and 100
feet  in length, with the  O2   percentage being 60% more than present   .Dragonflies 
(Meganeura sp) had a wing span of 70 cms  while cockroaches were 6 feet in length! 
Coal is the fossil remains of those trees.During this period,  flying insects and early
reptiles emerged
6) Permian .period  : Last period of Plaeozoic era,lasted for  38 million years.It resulted
in expansion of reptiles and extinction of many early invertebratres.reptiles like 
Dimetrodon (lenght 11feet) and mammal like reptiles were produced.
 Permian period can be considered to be the Age of Amphibians.It  was the era of
formation of Panfea(all landmasses were together and one sea -Panthalassa.The
permean ended with the greatest mass extinction  of Paleozoic life .
MESOZOIC ERA
 Extends from 245/248 mya to 65 mya and can be divided into three periods- Triassic,
Juarssic, and Cretaceous>During mesozoic era the world fauna drastically changed
from that of the paleozoic fauna.Dinosaurs eveolev in the Triassic but were not very
diverse till  Jurassic. Except for birds that evolved from Dinosaurs, most  dinosaurs
became extinct at the end of cretaceous .
1) Triassic period :
 The period was 248 --206 mya and lasted for 35 or 36 million years. this was the age
of  spectacular life forms on the earth , the dinosaurs had evolved, sea reptiles ruled the
sea ,invertebrates like ammonites were diverse and the pterosaurs and later birds went
in for a flight of life.The coniferous plants developed during the Triassic period.
2)Jurassic period:
Lasted from 248 - 146 mya , for about 69 million years and Dinosaurs like seropods anf
primitive birds lIke  Archaeopteryx lithographica  were eveolved.The angiosperms or
flowering plants started to evolve by this time .It was the pathway to the age of
Dinosaurs.
3) Cretaceous period
Lasted for  79 -81 million years  from 146 to  65 mya. The first phase of this period saw
the highest diversity of dinosaurs , the crocodiles, feathered dinosaurs came into
existence by this time.The later part of the period was marked with high techtonic
activity, movements of continents into a modern day pattern.It ended with the  extinction
called KT extinction where most of the dinosaurs and other animals were wiped out 
including about 50 % of marine invertebrate species., leaving the path for small
mammals to take over.The earliest angiosperms diversified and took over other  plant
groups.
Geological Time :cenozoic Era

CENOZOIC ERA
The cenozoic era stars after the mesozoic era and continues till the present, from 65
million years till today. It is the most recent of all the three major subdivisions of the
animal history and is divided into two main periods-tertiary and quarternary.
1)Tertiary period
Lasts from 65 to 1.5 mya.this period has been divided into two substages,
Paleogene(65-24 mya)  and Neogene(24 -1.8 mya).
Paleogene has been divided into 3 epochs, Paleocene, Eocine, Oligocene while 
Neogene  is with the epochs  Miocene and Pliocene.This was the age of evolution of
mammals. and whales.,large mammals, rodents, pigs, horses,bears, modern birds.
monkeys in South America, Ramapithecus etc were evolved, Finally the hominid
evolution took place and  australiopithecines were evolved
2)Quarternary period
This is calledthe age of man as the first Homo sapiens evolved in this period.Besides,
the Mammoths, Sabre toothed tiger, Marsupial lion, ground sloths, birds were
evolved.This period can be divided into two epochs-Pleistocene (1.8-0.11 mya ,last ice
age) and  Holocene, (11000   years to recent.The development of Human civilization
took place during this epoch.
Geological Time Scale
            

Geological time and evolution