Article
Introduction
The Cenozoic Era is the "Age of Mammals." North America’s characteristic landscapes began to develop during the Cenozoic. Birds and mammals rose in prominence after the extinction of giant reptiles. Common Cenozoic fossils include cat-like carnivores and early horses, as well as ice age woolly mammoths.
The Pleistocene Ice Ages began about 2.6 MYA. Some caves preserve the remains of ice age animals that died in them or were transported there after death. The "Age of Mammals" also includes humans—the earliest known evidence of Homo sapiens in the fossil record is from 300,000 years ago.
Cenozoic Resources
The Cenozoic Era is further divided into three Periods: the Paleogene, the Neogene, and the Quaternary. A few examples of NPS resources in each time Period are highlighted below.
Cenozoic “Age of Mammals” Coloring Pages
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Visit—Cenozoic Parks
Every park contains some slice of geologic time. Here we highlight a few parks associated with Cenozoic Era. This is not to say that a particular park has only rocks from the specified period. Rather, rocks in selected parks exemplify a certain event or preserve fossils or rocks from a certain geologic age.
- Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, Nebraska—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Aniakchak National Monument and Preserve, Alaska—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Badlands National Park, South Dakota—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Bandelier National Monument, New Mexico—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Big Bend National Park, Texas—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Capulin Volcano National Monument, New Mexico—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Cedar Breaks National Monument, Utah—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Channel Islands National Park, California—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- City of Rocks National Reserve, Idaho—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Colonial National Historic Park, Virginia—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Crater Lake National Park, Oregon—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Craters of the Moon National Monument & Preserve, Idaho—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Death Valley National Park, California, Nevada—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Devils Postpile National Monument, California—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Devils Tower National Monument, Wyoming—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- El Malpais National Monument, New Mexico—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, Colorado—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Fossil Butte National Monument, Wyoming—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona & Utah—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument, Idaho—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Haleakala National Park, Hawaii—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Oregon—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Joshua Tree National Park, California—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Katmai National Park, Alaska—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Lake Clark National Park, Alaska—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada and Arizona—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Lassen Volcanic National Park, California—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Lava Beds National Monument, California—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Mojave National Preserve, California—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Mount Rainier National Park, Washington—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Niobrara National Scenic River, Nebraska—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Arizona—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Pinnacles National Monument, California—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Pu'ukohola Heiau National Historic Site Hawai'i—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, California—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Scotts Bluff National Monument, Nebraska—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Sunset Crater National Monument, Arizona—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Valley Forge National Historical Site, Pennsylvania—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
- Valles Caldera National Preserve, New Mexico—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Vicksburg National Military Park, Mississippi—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Waco Mammoth National Monument, Texas—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Yellowstone National Park, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
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Last updated: October 9, 2020