The Ordovician is a geologic period and system, the second of six periods of the Paleozoic Era, and the second of twelve periods of the Phanerozoic Eon. The Ordovician spans 43.75 million years from t
External mold of the Ordovician bivalve Anomalodonta gigantea showing that the original aragonite shell dissolved on the sea floor, leaving a cemented mold for biological encrustation (Waynesville Formation of Franklin County, Indiana).
A diorama depicting Ordovician flora and fauna
Fossiliferous limestone slab from the Liberty Formation (Upper Ordovician) of Caesar Creek State Park near Waynesville, Ohio.
The trilobite Isotelus from Wisconsin
The Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era during the Phanerozoic eon, spanning 60.7 million years from the end of the preceding Silurian period at 419.62 million years ago, to
Ordovician
…dominated the oceans, with members of the latter group probably starting their establishment on land during this time, becoming fully established by the Devonian. The first land plants are known from this period. The Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event considerably increased the diversity of life. Fish…
The rocks of Lummaton Quarry in Torquay in Devon played an early role in defining the Devonian Period
Prototaxites milwaukeensis, the only known member of an unknown kingdom of life, from the Middle Devonian of Wisconsin
The Devonian Period marks the beginning of extensive land colonization by plants. With large land-dwelling herbivores not yet present, large forests grew and shaped the landscape.
Lycopod axis (branch) from the Middle Devonian of Wisconsin