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Tertiary
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{{Short description|Former term for the geologic period from 65 million to 2.58 million years ago}} {{About|the geological term|other uses|Tertiary (disambiguation)}} <noinclude>{{Requested move notice|1=Tertiary period|2=Talk:Tertiary#Requested move 31 May 2025}} </noinclude>{{Infobox geologic timespan | name = Tertiary | color = Tertiary | time_start = 66.0 | time_end = 2.6 | image_map = | caption_map = | image_outcrop = | caption_outcrop = | image_art = | caption_art = <!--Chronology--> | timeline = Cenozoic | formerly_part_of = | partially_contained_in = | partially_contains = <!--Etymology--> | chrono_name = | strat_name = | name_formality = Informal | name_accept_date = | alternate_spellings = | synonym1 = | synonym1_coined = | synonym2 = | synonym2_coined = | synonym3 = | synonym3_coined = | nicknames = | former_names = | proposed_names = <!--Usage Information--> | celestial_body = earth | usage = Regional(?) | timescales_used = [[International Commission on Stratigraphy|ICS]] Time Scale (formerly) | formerly_used_by = ICS | not_used_by = <!--Definition--> | chrono_unit = Period | strat_unit = System | proposed_by = | type_section = | timespan_formality = Informal | lower_boundary_def = K-Pg extinction event | lower_gssp_location = None | lower_gssp_accept_date = N/A | upper_boundary_def = Beginning of the [[Quaternary]] glaciation | upper_gssp_location = None | upper_gssp_accept_date = N/A <!--Atmospheric and Climatic Data--> | o2 = | co2 = | temp = | sea_level = }} '''Tertiary''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|t|ɜːr|.|ʃ|ə|.|r|i|,_|ˈ|t|ɜː|r|.|ʃ|i|ˌ|ɛr|.|i}} {{respell|TUR|shə|ree|,_|TUR|shee|err|ee}})<ref>{{cite news |last= |first= |date= |title=tertiary [ tur-shee-er-ee, tur-shuh-ree ] |url=https://www.dictionary.com/browse/tertiary |work=Dictionary.com Unabridged |location= |access-date=5 January 2022}}</ref> is an obsolete term for the [[Period (geology)|geologic period]] from 66 million to 2.6 million years ago. The period began with the extinction of the non-[[bird|avian]] [[dinosaur]]s in the [[Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event]], at the start of the [[Cenozoic|Cenozoic Era]], and extended to the beginning of the [[Quaternary glaciation]] at the end of the [[Pliocene|Pliocene Epoch]]. The time span covered by the Tertiary has no exact equivalent in the current [[geologic time]] system, but it is essentially the merged [[Paleogene]] and [[Neogene]] periods, which are informally called the Early Tertiary and the Late Tertiary, respectively.
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