List of the prehistoric life of Arkansas facts for kids
This list tells you about the amazing prehistoric creatures and plants whose fossils have been found in the US state of Arkansas. These fossils help scientists learn about life on Earth millions of years ago!
Contents
Precambrian Era: Earth's Earliest Life
The Precambrian Era was a super long time ago, before animals with hard shells or bones appeared. So far, scientists haven't found any fossils from this era in Arkansas. This means the rocks from that time might not be exposed, or conditions weren't right for preserving fossils.
Paleozoic Era: Ancient Life Forms
The Paleozoic Era, which means "ancient life," lasted from about 541 to 252 million years ago. During this time, life in the oceans really exploded! Many different kinds of sea creatures appeared, and eventually, plants and animals started to move onto land.
Cool Paleozoic Fossils from Arkansas
Arkansas has fossils from many interesting creatures that lived in the Paleozoic Era. Most of them lived in the sea.
- †Archimedes: This was a type of bryozoan, a tiny colonial animal that lived in the ocean. It looked a bit like a corkscrew!
- †Dalmanites: A type of trilobite, which were ancient sea creatures with segmented bodies and hard shells. They are related to modern crabs and insects.
- †Eucalyptocrinites: This was a "sea lily," or crinoid. Despite its name, it's an animal related to starfish and sea urchins, not a plant! They had long stems and a cup-shaped body with feathery arms.
- †Metacoceras: A type of nautiloid, which were ancient creatures related to modern squids and octopuses. They lived inside a coiled shell.
- †Sphaerexochus: Another type of trilobite that lived in the ancient seas.
Mesozoic Era: The Age of Dinosaurs
The Mesozoic Era, often called the "Age of Dinosaurs," lasted from about 252 to 66 million years ago. This was when dinosaurs ruled the land, and many other amazing creatures lived in the seas and skies.
Awesome Mesozoic Fossils from Arkansas
Arkansas has some cool fossils from the Mesozoic Era, including traces of dinosaurs!
- †Brontopodus: These are not bones, but fossilized footprints of huge, long-necked dinosaurs called sauropods! Finding these footprints tells us that these giant plant-eaters once walked through what is now Arkansas.
- †Cucullaea: A type of ancient clam, sometimes called a "false ark shell." Many different kinds of clams and snails lived in the seas during this time.
- †Exogyra: These were a type of "foam oyster" that lived in the seas. They had thick, coiled shells.
- †Platecarpus: A large, powerful marine reptile called a mosasaur. These were top predators in the ancient oceans, like giant lizards adapted for swimming.
- †Toxochelys: An ancient sea turtle that swam in the oceans during the Late Cretaceous period. Arkansas is a special place for this fossil, as it's where the first Toxochelys was found!
Cenozoic Era: The Age of Mammals
The Cenozoic Era began about 66 million years ago and continues to this day. After the dinosaurs disappeared, mammals became the dominant large animals on land. This era saw the rise of many familiar animal groups, including humans.
Cool Cenozoic Fossils from Arkansas
Arkansas has fossils of many mammals, fish, and other animals from the Cenozoic Era.
- †Basilosaurus: This was an ancient whale that lived in the Eocene epoch. It looked more like a giant sea serpent than a modern whale, with a very long body.
- †Bootherium: Also known as the Harlan's muskox, this was a type of ancient musk ox that lived during the Ice Age.
- †Canis armbrusteri: This was an ancient wolf, sometimes called Armbruster's wolf, that lived during the Pleistocene Ice Age. It was larger than modern wolves.
- †Coluber constrictor: This is the eastern racer snake, and its fossils show that snakes very similar to modern ones lived in Arkansas long ago.
- †Equus scotti: An extinct species of horse that lived in North America during the Pliocene and Pleistocene epochs.
- †Iridomyrmex: This is a genus of ants, and fossils of an extinct species, Iridomyrmex mapesi, have been found in Arkansas. This shows that ants have been around for a very long time!
- †Mammuthus columbi: The Columbian mammoth was a giant, hairy elephant that roamed North America during the Ice Age. Its fossils are a reminder of the huge mammals that once lived here.
- †Miracinonyx: This was the American cheetah, an extinct big cat that lived in North America. It was very fast, like modern cheetahs.
- †Mylohyus: Also known as the long-nosed peccary, this was an extinct type of pig-like animal that lived during the Pliocene and Pleistocene.
- †Panthera onca: The jaguar is a large wild cat, and its fossils show that jaguars once lived in Arkansas.
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- Pristis: This is a sawfish, a type of ray with a long, flat snout lined with teeth, like a saw. Fossils show they lived in ancient waters of Arkansas.
- †Smilodon: The famous saber-toothed cat! Smilodon fatalis was a powerful predator with huge, dagger-like canine teeth. Its fossils have been found in Arkansas, showing these incredible cats once hunted there.
- †Urocyon cinereoargenteus: This is the gray fox, and its fossils show that this type of fox has lived in Arkansas for a long time.
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