Single-celled algae called acritarchs and the Ediacaran animals vanish from the fossil record at the end of the Vendian, the period that closes the Proterozoic era. If they were wiped out by an ...

This period set the stage for the rise of complex multicellular organisms, eventually leading to animals, plants, and fungi. While the study provides a clearer picture of Proterozoic life ...

The Proterozoic eon was the gathering up of oxygen in Earth's atmosphere, and the Phanerozoic eon coincides with the major diversification of animals, plants, and fungi.