Before the dinosaurs ruled the earth, a time existed when life was in its earliest stages. Proto-reptiles and mammals walked the Earth on the supercontinent Pangea. The name "Pangea" originates from the Ancient Greek words pan (πᾶν), meaning "all" or "entire," and Gaia (Γαῖα), meaning "Earth" or "land."
The focus of this webpage, the Permian Period, was the final period of the Paleozoic Era. Lasting from 298.9 million to 251.9 million years ago, it followed the Carboniferous Period and preceded the Triassic Period.
Click through the phases of the largest extinction event ever to learn more about how it happened, what creatures were affected, and how they persevered to give rise to the era we, homo sapiens, reside in.