The First Animals: When, Where and How?

In this special debate for our First Animals exhibition programme scientists discuss the extraordinary evolutionary event that sparked the diversification of animal life. www.oum.ox.ac.uk/firstanimals * The Cambrian explosion, around 540 million years ago, was arguably one of the most important evolutionary events in Earth’s history. In the short space of just a few tens of millions of years, our planet was transformed by the origin of all the major animal groups that we recognise today. This extraordinary evolutionary event paved the way for animal life to diversify and fill every habitat across the length and breadth of the ocean. But what caused this explosive burst of activity? Was it due to a genetic revolution? Was it triggered by environmental change? Or were there many factors simultaneously at play? The cause of the Cambrian explosion is a source of great debate and a thriving research area. Our panel of experts discussed a range of topics including the timing of animal origins, the influence of developmental and environmental factors, and the emergence of modern oceanic ecosystems. Chair: Professor Paul Smith, Director, Museum of Natural History Panel: Professor Allison Daley, Professor of Palaeontology, University of Lausanne Professor Philip Donoghue, Professor of Palaeobiology, University of Bristol Professor Peter Holland, Linacre Professor of Zoology, University of Oxford Professor Rosalind Rickaby, Chair of Geology, University of Oxford