Miocene to Pliocene Pronunciation
23-2.6 million years ago
The Miocene and Pliocene together cover a time of critical evolution for modern mammals. Grasslands spread, climate cooled, and the ancestors of many living species took their modern forms. Early hominids were walking upright in Africa by the Pliocene.
Fun Facts
- ✓Australopithecus, an early bipedal hominid, lived during the Pliocene.
- ✓The Isthmus of Panama formed during the Pliocene, connecting North and South America and triggering the Great American Interchange.
- ✓Giant marine mammals including Megalodon were declining by the end of the Pliocene.