Ediacaran

British  

/ ˌiːdiːˈækərən /

adjective

1. of, denoting, or formed in the last 50 million years of the Neoproterozoic era, during which a new texturally and chemically distinctive carbonate layer appeared, indicating climatic change

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noun

1. the Ediacaran period or rock system

Ediacaran Scientific  

/ ē′dē-ä′kə-rən /

1. Relating to a group of fossilized organisms that are the earliest known remains of multicellular life. They are soft-bodied marine life forms that date from between 560 and 545 million years ago, during the late Precambrian Eon.

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Etymology

Origin of Ediacaran

C20: named after the Ediacara Hills in the Flinders mountain range in South Australia

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Ediacaran

"Life was pretty nice during the Ediacaran, so the need for sex was rather limited," said lead author Dr. Emily Mitchell from Cambridge's Department of Zoology.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 10, 2026

Although animals first appeared during the Ediacaran period, their diversity remained relatively limited for a surprisingly long time before a later burst of evolutionary innovation dramatically expanded life on Earth.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 10, 2026

The Ediacaran period occurred before the Cambrian explosion, a major evolutionary turning point when rising oxygen levels helped complex organisms diversify rapidly across Earth's oceans.

From Science Daily ● May 12, 2026

The new study now indicates that this transformation started at least 4 million years earlier, during the late Ediacaran period.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 6, 2026

Unlike most Ediacaran fossil sites, which preserve organisms as simple impressions in sandstone, the Jiangchuan Biota fossils are preserved as carbonaceous films.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 6, 2026