1 5 1a Timeline Changes in Australia
Content
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
EVOLUTION OF AUSTRALIAN BIOTA
Chapter 2 The evolution of Australian flora and fauna
STUDENT ACTIVITY
Timeline changes in Australia
Aim: To put into context the fossils that are studied in this module and how they provide evidence for
changing Australian biota over the past 250 million years.
Task: Analyse the two-part table that follows, giving a chronological account of changes in landmass,
climate, flora and fauna in Australia and evidence for these changes which are thought to have
occurred over the past 250 million years.
i`>Ê
,7ÊÊ-Ìi« >iÊ" -
PRELIMINARY COURSE
")/,/'9
). &/#53
■ Part 1: 250 mya–130 mya. Read this information to develop an understanding of the topic, putting
into context the relationship between the fossils you study and how they provide evidence for the
various changes, both geological and biological, that have taken place.
■ Part 2: 110 mya–present. Read the information in the table and the text in Chapters 1 and 2
of Evolution of Australian Biota in the textbook. Visit the ‘geological time’ section of the Lost
Kingdom’s website (www.lostkingdoms.com/snapshots/geological_time.htm) and any other
secondary sources needed. Complete the table by answering the questions within the table
and inserting illustrations where required.
Linked to
page 257
Note to students and teachers
This part of the task may be completed in one of several ways:
■ on an ongoing basis, as independent research, as you proceed through Chapters 1 and 2
■ by reading ahead to Chapter 2, to give yourself an overview of what you will be studying and the
type of evidence to look out for, as well as its significance, when doing fossil investigations
■ at the end of Chapter 2, as a review of the content and to put what you have learnt into context.
Table CD2.2 Timeline table linking geological, climatic and biological change in Australia from 250 mya
to the present
Part 1: 250 mya–130 mya
Time
Moving continents
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
Evidence
Dominant fauna
(animals)
250 mya
(Permean period)
■
■
■
■
Pangaea: one huge
continent, made up
of all the separate
continents that we
know today
Describe the climate:
Ice age forests:
Glossopteris
dominates at
first, but becomes
extinct at the end
of the Permean
period (about
230 mya)
■
Glossopteris fossils
found in glacial
sediments that
formed at the
beginning of the
period (280 mya)
Glossopteris fossils
and Permean coals
occur in South
America, Africa,
Australia and India,
suggesting that
these continents
were joined at the
time
■
Insects plentiful at
the time—evidence
of jagged holes in
Glossopteris leaves
where insects have
eaten them
Evidence:
‘insect beds’ at
Belmont on Lake
Macquarie, New
South Wales
continued . . .
1
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
Time
Moving continents
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
Evidence
Dominant fauna
(animals)
225 mya
■
■
Dicroidium:
fork-frond seed
ferns are the
common index
fossils
Club mosses,
Cylomeia: long,
narrow leaves,
either ribbonshaped or hair like;
grew on open plains
■
220 mya
Narrabeen
shales—cliffs along
Sydney’s northern
beaches (Harbord
to Palm beach)
Cylomeia leaf and
cone fossils
■
Insects plentiful
Conifers and cycads
(e.g. monkey puzzle
trees, and kauri
pines)
Seed ferns become
extinct
■
Talbragar fish
beds of New South
Wales: conifers
(e.g. Kauri pine
trees (Agathus),
monkey puzzles
and podocarps)
■
Dinosaurs,
pterosaurs (winged
reptiles), early
crocodiles and
birds
Evidence: fossil
feathers indicate
birds were also
around
Tall conifer forests,
with smaller
gingkoes, cycads
and club mosses
forming beneath
First flowering
plants appear
■
Pangaea begins to
split into Laurasia
(north) and
Gondwana (south)
■
180 mya
■
Parts of Gondwana
begin breaking
up (and parts of
Laurasia break up)
■
■
130 mya
Gondwana splits into
3 parts:
■ Africa and
South America
■ Australia,
Antarctica,
New Zealand and
New Guinea
■ India (already on
a collision course
with future Southeast Asia)
110 mya
(80 mya—New
Zealand separates)
Describe the climate
in Australia at the
time:
■
■
na
■
■
■
■
■
65 mya
■
Australia begins
separating from
Antarctica
MASS EXTINCTION
What theories are
suggested by available
evidence for this mass
extinction?
Dinosaurs (giant
reptiles) dominate
land
Flying reptiles
share the skies
with early forms
of birds
Giant reptiles
inhabit seas
Australia’s
first mammals
(including relatives
of the platypus)
appeared
EXTINCTION OF
DINOSAURS
■
Mammals
dominate
continued . . .
2
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
Time
Moving continents
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
55 mya
How was Australia
still connected to
Antarctica?
Identify the type of
vegetation at the
time:
Evidence
Dominant fauna
(animals)
List the animals:
Describe the climate:
45 mya
■
■
Australia becomes
a separate
continent: dry land,
but great lakes
remain in interior
■
■
20 mya
In what direction did
Australia begin drifting
once it separated from
Antarctica?
How does this account
for the climate
becoming warmer
at the time?
8 mya
■
Tectonic plate
carrying Australia
hits up against the
South-east Asian
plate
■
New Guinea rises
above sea level as
northern edge of
Australian plate
crumples against
Southeast Asian
plate
Link between
ancient and
modern forms
Flowering plants
bloom
Conifers and
cycads decrease
in importance
Describe the type of
vegetation: lush rain
forest
Describe the animals:
Insert a picture of
a rainforest below:
Describe the type of
vegetation and insert
a picture of the type
of vegetation:
Discuss the
significance of the
Nullarbor Plain as
a source of fossils:
Describe the animals:
Describe the climate
change and give a
reason:
continued . . .
3
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
Time
Moving continents
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
4 mya
Describe Australia’s
position:
Describe Australia’s
vegetation:
Evidence
Dominant fauna
(animals)
Name some giant
animals that evolved
(these were called
megafauna):
100 000 ya
60 000–40 000 ya
Arrival of humans?
10 000 ya
Present day
■
Eucalyptus (gum
trees) and Acacia
(wattles) dominate
4
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
Answers
Table CD2.2 Timeline table linking geological, climatic and biological change in Australia from 250 mya
to the present
Part 1: 250 mya–130 mya
Time
Moving continents
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
Evidence
Dominant fauna
(animals)
250 mya
(Permean period)
■
■
Ice age forests:
Glossopteris
dominates at
first, but becomes
extinct at the end
of the Permean
period (about
230 mya)
■
Glossopteris fossils
found in glacial
sediments that
formed at the
beginning of the
period (280 mya)
Glossopteris fossils
and Permean coals
occur in South
America, Africa,
Australia and India,
suggesting that
these continents
were joined at the
time
■
Dicroidium:
fork-frond seed
ferns are the
common index
fossils
Club mosses,
Cylomeia: long,
narrow leaves,
either ribbonshaped or hair like;
grew on open plains
■
220 mya
Narrabeen
shales—cliffs along
Sydney’s northern
beaches (Harbord
to Palm beach)
Cylomeia leaf and
cone fossils
■
Insects plentiful
Conifers and cycads
(e.g. monkey puzzle
trees, and kauri
pines)
Seed ferns become
extinct
■
Talbragar fish
beds of New South
Wales: conifers
(e.g. Kauri pine
trees (Agathus),
monkey puzzles
and podocarps)
■
Dinosaurs,
pterosaurs (winged
reptiles), early
crocodiles and
birds
Evidence: fossil
feathers indicate
birds were also
around
Pangaea: one huge
continent, made up
of all the separate
continents that we
know today
Describe the climate:
Hot dry interior
because a majority
of the land was away
from the sea, little
rainfall and great
seasonal fluctuations
225 mya
■
Pangaea begins to
split into Laurasia
(north) and
Gondwana (south)
■
■
180 mya
■
Parts of Gondwana
begin breaking
up (and parts of
Laurasia break up)
■
■
130 mya
Gondwana splits into
3 parts:
■ Africa and
South America
■ Australia,
Antarctica,
New Zealand and
New Guinea
■ India (already on
a collision course
with future Southeast Asia)
■
■
■
■
Insects plentiful at
the time—evidence
of jagged holes in
Glossopteris leaves
where insects have
eaten them
Evidence:
‘insect beds’ at
Belmont on Lake
Macquarie, New
South Wales
na
continued . . .
5
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
Time
Moving continents
110 mya
(80 mya—New
Zealand separates)
Describe the climate
in Australia at the
time:
■ Cool and wet
■ Most of Australia
under shallow seas
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
Evidence
Dominant fauna
(animals)
■
■
■
Tall conifer forests,
with smaller
gingkoes, cycads
and club mosses
forming beneath
First flowering
plants appear
■
■
■
65 mya
55 mya
■
Australia begins
separating from
Antarctica
How was Australia
still connected to
Antarctica?
Via Tasmania
Describe the climate:
Global climate was
warmer so Antarctica
and Australia were
free of ice and snow.
Australia was wet
and warm
45 mya
■
Australia becomes
a separate
continent: dry land,
but great lakes
remain in interior
MASS EXTINCTION
Identify the type of
vegetation at the
time:
Broad-leaved
rainforests were
replacing earlier
conifer forests
What theories are
suggested by available
evidence for this mass
extinction?
Meteorite strike
or huge volcanic
eruptions or both
formed a dust cloud
and reduced sunlight,
lowered temperatures,
generated acid rain
and killed off plant and
animal life
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
Fossils from
Murgon in southeast Queensland
Tooth of a placental
mammal
Fossils of
Australia’s oldest
marsupial
Fossils of frogs,
bats and songbirds
Dinosaurs (giant
reptiles) dominate
land
Flying reptiles
share the skies
with early forms
of birds
Giant reptiles
inhabit seas
Australia’s
first mammals
(including relatives
of the platypus)
appeared
EXTINCTION OF
DINOSAURS
■
Mammals
dominate
List the animals:
Dinosaurs, flightless
birds, frogs, turtles,
snakes and mammals
(no more marine and
flying animals)
Link between
ancient and
modern forms
Flowering plants
bloom
Conifers and
cycads decrease
in importance
continued . . .
6
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
Time
Moving continents
20 mya
In what direction did
Australia begin drifting
once it separated from
Antarctica?
Northwards
How does this account
for the climate
becoming warmer
at the time?
Further north is closer
to the equator and
warmer.
■ Tectonic plate
carrying Australia
hits up against the
Southeast Asian
plate
8 mya
■
New Guinea rises
above sea level as
northern edge of
Australian plate
crumples against
Southeast Asian
plate
Describe the climate
change and give a
reason:
■ Dry and cool
■ Sea levels fell as
water began to
freeze to form ice
caps at the poles
■ Rainfall decreased
as well
4 mya
Describe Australia’s
position:
Close to its present
position
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
Describe the type of
vegetation: lush rain
forest
Evidence
■
■
Insert a picture of
a rainforest below:
■
■
Fossils from
Riversleigh,
Queensland
15 million year old
platypus skull fossil
‘Thingodonta’,
whose skull
and teeth differ
from any known
marsupials
Fangaroo—small
kangaroo with
enlarged canines
Dominant fauna
(animals)
Describe the animals:
■ Marsupial lions,
flesh-eating
kangaroos
■ Many common
ancestors and
relatives of today’s
koalas, kangaroos,
possums and
platypus
Describe the type of
vegetation and insert
a picture of the type
of vegetation:
■ Open forests and
woodlands spread
■ Rainforests
decreased in size
and became limited
to the coastal
regions
Discuss the
significance of the
Nullarbor Plain as
a source of fossils:
■ The Nullarbor Plain
became exposed
as sea levels
dropped
■ Fossils of animals
from 8 mya provide
evidence of the life
forms at that time
Describe the animals:
■ Hopping kangaroos
■ Thylacines
■ Marsupial lions
■ Thunderbirds
■ Large wombat-like
marsupials
Describe Australia’s
vegetation:
■ Forests of mainly
eucalypts (gum
trees) and wattles
■
Name some giant
animals that evolved
(these were called
megafauna):
■ Giant pythons
■ Giant crocodiles
(salt water)
■ Giant koalas
Fossils from
Bluff Downs,
Queensland
100 000 ya
60 000–40 000 ya
■
Use of fire-stick
farming changes
the vegetation
10 000 ya
Present day
■
Eucalyptus (gum
trees) and Acacia
(wattles) dominate
Arrival of humans?
■ Indigenous people
arrived by islandhopping from the
north
■
■
Dingoes introduced
Tasmanian
thylacine declined
■
European settlers
arrived 200+ years
ago
7
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
EVOLUTION OF AUSTRALIAN BIOTA
Chapter 2 The evolution of Australian flora and fauna
STUDENT ACTIVITY
Timeline changes in Australia
Aim: To put into context the fossils that are studied in this module and how they provide evidence for
changing Australian biota over the past 250 million years.
Task: Analyse the two-part table that follows, giving a chronological account of changes in landmass,
climate, flora and fauna in Australia and evidence for these changes which are thought to have
occurred over the past 250 million years.
i`>Ê
,7ÊÊ-Ìi« >iÊ" -
PRELIMINARY COURSE
")/,/'9
). &/#53
■ Part 1: 250 mya–130 mya. Read this information to develop an understanding of the topic, putting
into context the relationship between the fossils you study and how they provide evidence for the
various changes, both geological and biological, that have taken place.
■ Part 2: 110 mya–present. Read the information in the table and the text in Chapters 1 and 2
of Evolution of Australian Biota in the textbook. Visit the ‘geological time’ section of the Lost
Kingdom’s website (www.lostkingdoms.com/snapshots/geological_time.htm) and any other
secondary sources needed. Complete the table by answering the questions within the table
and inserting illustrations where required.
Linked to
page 257
Note to students and teachers
This part of the task may be completed in one of several ways:
■ on an ongoing basis, as independent research, as you proceed through Chapters 1 and 2
■ by reading ahead to Chapter 2, to give yourself an overview of what you will be studying and the
type of evidence to look out for, as well as its significance, when doing fossil investigations
■ at the end of Chapter 2, as a review of the content and to put what you have learnt into context.
Table CD2.2 Timeline table linking geological, climatic and biological change in Australia from 250 mya
to the present
Part 1: 250 mya–130 mya
Time
Moving continents
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
Evidence
Dominant fauna
(animals)
250 mya
(Permean period)
■
■
■
■
Pangaea: one huge
continent, made up
of all the separate
continents that we
know today
Describe the climate:
Ice age forests:
Glossopteris
dominates at
first, but becomes
extinct at the end
of the Permean
period (about
230 mya)
■
Glossopteris fossils
found in glacial
sediments that
formed at the
beginning of the
period (280 mya)
Glossopteris fossils
and Permean coals
occur in South
America, Africa,
Australia and India,
suggesting that
these continents
were joined at the
time
■
Insects plentiful at
the time—evidence
of jagged holes in
Glossopteris leaves
where insects have
eaten them
Evidence:
‘insect beds’ at
Belmont on Lake
Macquarie, New
South Wales
continued . . .
1
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
Time
Moving continents
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
Evidence
Dominant fauna
(animals)
225 mya
■
■
Dicroidium:
fork-frond seed
ferns are the
common index
fossils
Club mosses,
Cylomeia: long,
narrow leaves,
either ribbonshaped or hair like;
grew on open plains
■
220 mya
Narrabeen
shales—cliffs along
Sydney’s northern
beaches (Harbord
to Palm beach)
Cylomeia leaf and
cone fossils
■
Insects plentiful
Conifers and cycads
(e.g. monkey puzzle
trees, and kauri
pines)
Seed ferns become
extinct
■
Talbragar fish
beds of New South
Wales: conifers
(e.g. Kauri pine
trees (Agathus),
monkey puzzles
and podocarps)
■
Dinosaurs,
pterosaurs (winged
reptiles), early
crocodiles and
birds
Evidence: fossil
feathers indicate
birds were also
around
Tall conifer forests,
with smaller
gingkoes, cycads
and club mosses
forming beneath
First flowering
plants appear
■
Pangaea begins to
split into Laurasia
(north) and
Gondwana (south)
■
180 mya
■
Parts of Gondwana
begin breaking
up (and parts of
Laurasia break up)
■
■
130 mya
Gondwana splits into
3 parts:
■ Africa and
South America
■ Australia,
Antarctica,
New Zealand and
New Guinea
■ India (already on
a collision course
with future Southeast Asia)
110 mya
(80 mya—New
Zealand separates)
Describe the climate
in Australia at the
time:
■
■
na
■
■
■
■
■
65 mya
■
Australia begins
separating from
Antarctica
MASS EXTINCTION
What theories are
suggested by available
evidence for this mass
extinction?
Dinosaurs (giant
reptiles) dominate
land
Flying reptiles
share the skies
with early forms
of birds
Giant reptiles
inhabit seas
Australia’s
first mammals
(including relatives
of the platypus)
appeared
EXTINCTION OF
DINOSAURS
■
Mammals
dominate
continued . . .
2
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
Time
Moving continents
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
55 mya
How was Australia
still connected to
Antarctica?
Identify the type of
vegetation at the
time:
Evidence
Dominant fauna
(animals)
List the animals:
Describe the climate:
45 mya
■
■
Australia becomes
a separate
continent: dry land,
but great lakes
remain in interior
■
■
20 mya
In what direction did
Australia begin drifting
once it separated from
Antarctica?
How does this account
for the climate
becoming warmer
at the time?
8 mya
■
Tectonic plate
carrying Australia
hits up against the
South-east Asian
plate
■
New Guinea rises
above sea level as
northern edge of
Australian plate
crumples against
Southeast Asian
plate
Link between
ancient and
modern forms
Flowering plants
bloom
Conifers and
cycads decrease
in importance
Describe the type of
vegetation: lush rain
forest
Describe the animals:
Insert a picture of
a rainforest below:
Describe the type of
vegetation and insert
a picture of the type
of vegetation:
Discuss the
significance of the
Nullarbor Plain as
a source of fossils:
Describe the animals:
Describe the climate
change and give a
reason:
continued . . .
3
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
Time
Moving continents
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
4 mya
Describe Australia’s
position:
Describe Australia’s
vegetation:
Evidence
Dominant fauna
(animals)
Name some giant
animals that evolved
(these were called
megafauna):
100 000 ya
60 000–40 000 ya
Arrival of humans?
10 000 ya
Present day
■
Eucalyptus (gum
trees) and Acacia
(wattles) dominate
4
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
Answers
Table CD2.2 Timeline table linking geological, climatic and biological change in Australia from 250 mya
to the present
Part 1: 250 mya–130 mya
Time
Moving continents
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
Evidence
Dominant fauna
(animals)
250 mya
(Permean period)
■
■
Ice age forests:
Glossopteris
dominates at
first, but becomes
extinct at the end
of the Permean
period (about
230 mya)
■
Glossopteris fossils
found in glacial
sediments that
formed at the
beginning of the
period (280 mya)
Glossopteris fossils
and Permean coals
occur in South
America, Africa,
Australia and India,
suggesting that
these continents
were joined at the
time
■
Dicroidium:
fork-frond seed
ferns are the
common index
fossils
Club mosses,
Cylomeia: long,
narrow leaves,
either ribbonshaped or hair like;
grew on open plains
■
220 mya
Narrabeen
shales—cliffs along
Sydney’s northern
beaches (Harbord
to Palm beach)
Cylomeia leaf and
cone fossils
■
Insects plentiful
Conifers and cycads
(e.g. monkey puzzle
trees, and kauri
pines)
Seed ferns become
extinct
■
Talbragar fish
beds of New South
Wales: conifers
(e.g. Kauri pine
trees (Agathus),
monkey puzzles
and podocarps)
■
Dinosaurs,
pterosaurs (winged
reptiles), early
crocodiles and
birds
Evidence: fossil
feathers indicate
birds were also
around
Pangaea: one huge
continent, made up
of all the separate
continents that we
know today
Describe the climate:
Hot dry interior
because a majority
of the land was away
from the sea, little
rainfall and great
seasonal fluctuations
225 mya
■
Pangaea begins to
split into Laurasia
(north) and
Gondwana (south)
■
■
180 mya
■
Parts of Gondwana
begin breaking
up (and parts of
Laurasia break up)
■
■
130 mya
Gondwana splits into
3 parts:
■ Africa and
South America
■ Australia,
Antarctica,
New Zealand and
New Guinea
■ India (already on
a collision course
with future Southeast Asia)
■
■
■
■
Insects plentiful at
the time—evidence
of jagged holes in
Glossopteris leaves
where insects have
eaten them
Evidence:
‘insect beds’ at
Belmont on Lake
Macquarie, New
South Wales
na
continued . . .
5
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
Time
Moving continents
110 mya
(80 mya—New
Zealand separates)
Describe the climate
in Australia at the
time:
■ Cool and wet
■ Most of Australia
under shallow seas
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
Evidence
Dominant fauna
(animals)
■
■
■
Tall conifer forests,
with smaller
gingkoes, cycads
and club mosses
forming beneath
First flowering
plants appear
■
■
■
65 mya
55 mya
■
Australia begins
separating from
Antarctica
How was Australia
still connected to
Antarctica?
Via Tasmania
Describe the climate:
Global climate was
warmer so Antarctica
and Australia were
free of ice and snow.
Australia was wet
and warm
45 mya
■
Australia becomes
a separate
continent: dry land,
but great lakes
remain in interior
MASS EXTINCTION
Identify the type of
vegetation at the
time:
Broad-leaved
rainforests were
replacing earlier
conifer forests
What theories are
suggested by available
evidence for this mass
extinction?
Meteorite strike
or huge volcanic
eruptions or both
formed a dust cloud
and reduced sunlight,
lowered temperatures,
generated acid rain
and killed off plant and
animal life
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
Fossils from
Murgon in southeast Queensland
Tooth of a placental
mammal
Fossils of
Australia’s oldest
marsupial
Fossils of frogs,
bats and songbirds
Dinosaurs (giant
reptiles) dominate
land
Flying reptiles
share the skies
with early forms
of birds
Giant reptiles
inhabit seas
Australia’s
first mammals
(including relatives
of the platypus)
appeared
EXTINCTION OF
DINOSAURS
■
Mammals
dominate
List the animals:
Dinosaurs, flightless
birds, frogs, turtles,
snakes and mammals
(no more marine and
flying animals)
Link between
ancient and
modern forms
Flowering plants
bloom
Conifers and
cycads decrease
in importance
continued . . .
6
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
BIOLOGY IN FOCUS
Time
Moving continents
20 mya
In what direction did
Australia begin drifting
once it separated from
Antarctica?
Northwards
How does this account
for the climate
becoming warmer
at the time?
Further north is closer
to the equator and
warmer.
■ Tectonic plate
carrying Australia
hits up against the
Southeast Asian
plate
8 mya
■
New Guinea rises
above sea level as
northern edge of
Australian plate
crumples against
Southeast Asian
plate
Describe the climate
change and give a
reason:
■ Dry and cool
■ Sea levels fell as
water began to
freeze to form ice
caps at the poles
■ Rainfall decreased
as well
4 mya
Describe Australia’s
position:
Close to its present
position
Dominant flora
(vegetation)
Describe the type of
vegetation: lush rain
forest
Evidence
■
■
Insert a picture of
a rainforest below:
■
■
Fossils from
Riversleigh,
Queensland
15 million year old
platypus skull fossil
‘Thingodonta’,
whose skull
and teeth differ
from any known
marsupials
Fangaroo—small
kangaroo with
enlarged canines
Dominant fauna
(animals)
Describe the animals:
■ Marsupial lions,
flesh-eating
kangaroos
■ Many common
ancestors and
relatives of today’s
koalas, kangaroos,
possums and
platypus
Describe the type of
vegetation and insert
a picture of the type
of vegetation:
■ Open forests and
woodlands spread
■ Rainforests
decreased in size
and became limited
to the coastal
regions
Discuss the
significance of the
Nullarbor Plain as
a source of fossils:
■ The Nullarbor Plain
became exposed
as sea levels
dropped
■ Fossils of animals
from 8 mya provide
evidence of the life
forms at that time
Describe the animals:
■ Hopping kangaroos
■ Thylacines
■ Marsupial lions
■ Thunderbirds
■ Large wombat-like
marsupials
Describe Australia’s
vegetation:
■ Forests of mainly
eucalypts (gum
trees) and wattles
■
Name some giant
animals that evolved
(these were called
megafauna):
■ Giant pythons
■ Giant crocodiles
(salt water)
■ Giant koalas
Fossils from
Bluff Downs,
Queensland
100 000 ya
60 000–40 000 ya
■
Use of fire-stick
farming changes
the vegetation
10 000 ya
Present day
■
Eucalyptus (gum
trees) and Acacia
(wattles) dominate
Arrival of humans?
■ Indigenous people
arrived by islandhopping from the
north
■
■
Dingoes introduced
Tasmanian
thylacine declined
■
European settlers
arrived 200+ years
ago
7
Copyright © 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
