Editing Devonian (section)

=== Laurussia ===
[[File:Laurussia Euramerica.svg|thumb|263x263px|Continental boundary of [[Laurussia]] (Euramerica) and its constituents, superimposed onto modern coastlines]]
By the early Devonian, the continent Laurussia (also known as [[Euramerica]]) was fully formed through the collision of the continents [[Laurentia]] (modern day North America) and [[Baltica]] (modern day northern and eastern Europe). The tectonic effects of this collision continued into the Devonian, producing a string of mountain ranges along the southeastern coast of the continent. In present-day eastern North America, the [[Acadian orogeny|Acadian Orogeny]] continued to raise the [[Appalachian Mountains]]. Further east, the collision also extended the rise of the [[Caledonian orogeny|Caledonian Mountains]] of [[Great Britain]] and [[Scandinavia]]. As the Caledonian Orogeny wound down in the later part of the period, [[orogenic collapse]] facilitated a cluster of granite intrusions in Scotland.<ref name="Cocks-2016" />

Most of Laurussia was located south of the equator, but in the Devonian it moved northwards and began to rotate counterclockwise towards its modern position. While the most northern parts of the continent (such as [[Greenland]] and [[Ellesmere Island]]) established tropical conditions, most of the continent was located within the natural dry zone along the [[Tropic of Capricorn]], which (as nowadays) is a result of the convergence of two great air-masses, the [[Hadley cell]] and the [[Ferrel cell]]. In these near-deserts, the [[Old Red Sandstone]] sedimentary beds formed, made red by the oxidised iron ([[hematite]]) characteristic of drought conditions. The abundance of red sandstone on continental land also lends Laurussia the name "the Old Red Continent".<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/science/Devonian-Period |title=Devonian Period |series=geochronology |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica |access-date=2017-12-15 |df=dmy-all |language=en}}</ref> For much of the Devonian, the majority of western Laurussia (North America) was covered by subtropical [[Inland sea (geology)|inland seas]] which hosted a diverse ecosystem of reefs and marine life. Devonian marine deposits are particularly prevalent in the [[Midwestern United States|midwestern]] and [[Northeastern United States|northeastern]] United States. Devonian reefs also extended along the southeast edge of Laurussia, a coastline now corresponding to southern [[England]], [[Belgium]], and other mid-latitude areas of Europe.<ref name="Cocks-2016" />

In the Early and Middle Devonian, the west coast of Laurussia was a passive margin with broad coastal waters, deep silty embayments, river deltas and estuaries, found today in [[Idaho]] and [[Nevada]]. In the Late Devonian, an approaching volcanic [[island arc]] reached the steep slope of the continental shelf and began to uplift deep water deposits. This minor collision sparked the start of a mountain-building episode called the [[Antler orogeny]], which extended into the Carboniferous.<ref name="Cocks-2016" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~rcb7/devpaleo.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100415135733/http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~rcb7/devpaleo.html |title=Devonian Paleogeography, Southwestern US |archive-date=April 15, 2010 |last=Blakey |first=Ron C. |website=jan.ucc.nau.edu |url-status=dead |publisher=Northern Arizona University |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Mountain building could also be found in the far northeastern extent of the continent, as minor tropical island arcs and detached Baltic terranes re-join the continent. Deformed remnants of these mountains can still be found on Ellesmere Island and [[Svalbard]]. Many of the Devonian collisions in Laurussia produce both mountain chains and [[foreland basin]]s, which are frequently fossiliferous.<ref name="Cocks-2016" /><ref name="Golonka-2020" />