Miocene

The Miocene is a geological epoch lasting from about 23 to 5.3 million years ago. It saw major changes in global climate, ecosystems, and the distribution of continents and oceans.

Neogene: The geological period spanning the Miocene and Pliocene, from about 23 to 2.6 million years ago. The Miocene is the first of the Neogene’s two epochs.
Messinian salinity crisis: A late Miocene episode when the Mediterranean Sea lost much of its water and accumulated thick evaporite deposits. Its salt deposits preserve evidence of an extreme shift in Mediterranean conditions.
Geologic time scale: The system dividing Earth’s history into nested units based on rocks, fossils, and dated events. It places the Miocene within the hierarchy of geological time.
C4 carbon fixation: A photosynthetic pathway that concentrates carbon dioxide before its use in the Calvin cycle. Its expansion among grasses is associated with changing Miocene climates and atmospheric conditions.
Oligocene: The geological epoch preceding the Miocene, lasting from about 33.9 to 23 million years ago. The Miocene followed the Oligocene’s cooler conditions and evolving ice sheets.
Miocene Climatic Optimum: A warm interval about 17 to 15 million years ago, marked by elevated global temperatures and reduced ice volume. This peak warmth punctuated the Miocene’s longer-term cooling trend.
Barberton Greenstone Belt: A geological region in South Africa known for exceptionally preserved Archean rocks and ancient life evidence. Its rocks provide a contrast in age with Miocene deposits and fossils.
Epoch (geology): A unit of geologic time smaller than a period and larger than an age. The Miocene is an epoch within the Neogene Period.
Grassland: An ecosystem dominated by grasses, with few trees and often substantial grazing fauna. Grasslands expanded across many regions during the later Miocene.
Pliocene: The geological epoch following the Miocene, lasting from about 5.3 to 2.6 million years ago. The Pliocene continued cooling and preceded the repeated glaciations of the Pleistocene.

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