Silurian fauna

In the Paleozoic era we find several periods. The third of them is the Silurian period. It is located between the Ordovician period and Devonian period. One of its main characteristics is the intense geological activity that the formation of great mountains had. Regarding the Silurian fauna We also find great evolution of many species at the level of biodiversity. This period of time was reigned with a great amount of changes in all the fauna.

Therefore, we are going to dedicate this article to tell you all the characteristics and evolution of the Silurian fauna.

Silurian period

The duration of this period was approximately 25 million years. It began about 444 million years ago and ended approximately 419 million years ago. It was a great period from a geological point of view. During all this time, the formation of mountain systems that we know today as the Appalachian Mountains of North America took place.

During this period a great diversification of life. The first vascular plants began to appear and animals underwent a significant evolution. Corals and arthropods are among the animals that evolved the most. There was also a process of extinction considered as a lesser degree. These events mainly affected organisms in marine habitats. For example, half of the trilobite species became extinct during the Silurian period.

In terms of climate, the planet stabilized quite a bit in terms of temperatures. The Silurian climate was mainly warm. In these times, the glaciers that had formed during the previous period were located more towards the south pole of the planet. There is fossil evidence that indicates that there was a great period of storms during this time. After these climatic events, the environmental temperature seemed to decrease. It reached such a point that it began to cool the environment a bit but without reaching the extremes of an ice age. At the end of this period the climate began to be more humid and warmer with a significant number of precipitations.

Flora and vegetation

silurian fauna

As we have mentioned before, everything that concerns life, both flora and fauna, underwent a great deal of change during this period. A massive extension event occurred during the Silurian fauna where some species could diversify and other genera evolved. And it is that an extinction event helps to create new adaptations to the surviving species.

In the flora we find a large amount of algae in marine ecosystems, mainly green algae. These algae had the function of controlling the balance of the environment since they were the basis for the generation of oxygen and the basis of the trophic chains. During this period of time, a milestone in plant development occurred. And is that the first vascular plants began to appear. These plants are those that have the conducting vessels known as xylem and phloem.

At the beginning of this period, the landscape was far from the realm we see today. Most of the diversity was in the marine areas. The first plants that developed in terrestrial ecosystems they were required to stay near bodies of water. In this way they could have greater availability of water and nutrients.

Silurian fauna

Silurian fauna fossils

At the end of the Ordovician period there was a mass extinction process that affected a large number of existing animals. As we have mentioned before, an extinction process helps the surviving species generate new adaptations in order to survive the new environment. Among the species that were achieved diversify and adapt to these new environments we find arthropods. The arthropods were the animals that reigned the Silurian fauna.

It is one of the groups that experienced a significant evolution. Approximately 425 fossils have been found representing individuals belonging to this phylum. Trilobites decreased their range and abundance due to the extinction period. During this time Myriapods and chelicerates began to appear for the first time. These animals began to spread throughout all terrestrial territories.

On the other hand, the mollusks also had some return. Among the mollusks that existed at that time we find the species of bivalves and gastropods. These animals inhabited the seabed and adapted to this environment. We also find echinoderms as animals that managed to adapt after the extinction period. Within the echinoderms we find the crinoids that ended up reducing their populations. These crinoids are considered as the first echinoderms and, therefore, the oldest on the planet.

The group of fish could observe some diversification. During the Ordovician period ostracoderms appeared mainly characterized by not having a jaw. These animals are considered the oldest vertebrates of which there are fossil records. However, during the Silurian period other types of fish began to appear. Among the Silurian fauna we sometimes find a jaw known as placoderms. One of its distinctive features is that they have a shell on the front of their body to protect themselves from predators.

Other types of fish that arose during the Silurian fauna are acanthods. They are known as spiny sharks and are organisms similar to ostracoderms, cartilaginous fish. There are some doubts among scientists about the appearance of cartilaginous fish. Some say that they appeared during the Silurian fauna, while others claim that they appeared in the later period.

Silurian fauna: coral reefs

Coral reefs were of great importance in the Silurian fauna. It is known that the first coral reefs appeared in the previous period. However, it was during this period of time that they increasingly began to expand. The species associated with these coral reefs were able to increase their area of ​​distribution and abundance. This is because this coral reef gave them everything they needed to live.

Thanks to the adaptations of the species around the coral reefs, they were made up of very varied species. Among the most common to observe we have sponges and other species of crinoids that belong to the group of echinoderms.

I hope that with this information you can learn more about the Silurian fauna.


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