Permian Period
An age of increasing global temperatures and drying
The Permian Period is in the Paleozoic Era, occurring after the Carboniferous Period and before the Triassic Period. The Permian is the last period in the Paleozoic Era.
Geologic Age
298.9–252.2 million years ago
Subdivisions
Late Permian (Lopingian): 259.8–252.2 Ma
Changhsingian: 254.14±0.07–252.17±0.06 Ma
Wuchiapingian: 259.8±0.4–254.14±0.07 Ma
Middle Permian (Guadalupian): 272.3–259.8 Ma
Capitanian: 265.1±0.4–259.8±0.4 Ma
Wordian: 268.8±0.5–265.1±0.4 Ma
Roadian: 272.3±0.5–268.8±0.5 Ma
Early Permian (Cisuralian): 298.9–272.3 Ma
Kungurian: 283.5±0.6–272.3±0.5 Ma
Artinskian: 290.1±0.26–283.5±0.6 Ma
Sakmarian: 295.0±0.18–290.1±0.26 Ma
Asselian: 298.9±0.15–295.0±0.18 Ma
Eon / Eon
What happened during this time?
Biological
Flora, spore-bearing
Some spore-bearing plants continued to thrive: modern ferns, horsetails, and some clubmosses
End of Permian exhibits decline of other spore-bearing plants and some early seed plants
Lepidodendrids and Calamites go extinct during the Permian; some rhizomophic isoetalean lycopods survive as smaller trees
Flora, seed-bearing
Glossopteris, Cycads, Cordaitales, and Voltziales, were present during the Permian
Possible origin of the Bennettitales
The earliest record of ginkgophytes, Trichopitys, occurs during this time (Zhou 2009)
Nystroemia, taxa of gymnosperms from the Permian of North China (Wang & Pfefferkorn 2010) had bifurcating and highly branched pinnate female organs bearing bicornute ovules (seeds), and entire leaves with anastomosing veins that are born on complex and modern-looking branching systems
The Middle Permian catastrophe causes the extinction of Medullosids, Cordaites, and Gigantopterids.
Earliest evidence of nurse logs, in which seedlings grow on and into fallen logs which they are using as a starter medium (Feng et al. 2022)
Fauna
Appearance of proto-mammals
Early Permian faunas of North America and Europe were dominated by primitive pelycosaur synapsids including the herbivorous edaphosaurids, and carnivorous sphenacodontids, and diadectids
Decline of amphibians
Eunotosaurus africanus, a reptile that was possibly a close relative of turtles, lived 260 million years ago
Extinction event affects marine community dramatically
Geophysical
Oxygen levels begin at record-high levels (33%) and fall to 27% by the period's end
Carbon dioxide levels begin at 350 ppm and end the period at 550 ppm
Super-continent of Pangaea formed during Permian
Interior regions of this vast continent were probably dry
Seasonal fluctuations due to the lack of a moderating effect provided by nearby bodies of water
There is a large western ocean called Panthalassia
There is a smaller eastern ocean called Tethys
Widespread extinction at end of Permian
Largest extinction event in Earth's history
