Learn more about a time period marked by an intense burst of evolution. 3 min read The Cambrian period, part of the Paleozoic era, produced the most intense burst of evolution ever known.

visitors can follow fossil evidence tracing the evolution of life during the Cambrian period — the first geological period of the Paleozoic era — which lasted from 541 million to 485 million ...

Internal, genetic factors were also crucial. Recent research suggests that the period prior to the Cambrian explosion saw the gradual evolution of a "genetic tool kit" of genes that govern ...

Then, about 540 million years ago, something else changed ... dramatically. It was the time of the Cambrian Explosion, an eruption of life when Earth’s very first animals began appearing in the ...