Cretaceous Period
145-66 million years ago
The Cretaceous Period is the last chapter of the dinosaur age and the most famous. T. rex, Triceratops, Velociraptor, and Ankylosaurus all lived here. The continents were taking shape into roughly what we know today, flowering plants appeared for the first time, and dinosaurs reached their greatest diversity before the asteroid impact 66 million years ago ended everything.
Fun Facts
- âThe Cretaceous ended 66 million years ago when an asteroid roughly 6 miles wide struck what is now Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula.
- âFlowering plants first appeared and spread during the Cretaceous Period.
- âThe Cretaceous was the longest period of the Mesozoic Era, lasting about 79 million years.
- âA shallow inland sea split North America in half during much of the Cretaceous.
- âMore dinosaur species have been discovered from the Cretaceous than from any other period.