London : Oxygen is crucial for the existence of animals on the Earth. But an increase in oxygen levels did not apparently lead to the rise of the first animals on our planet, according to researchers, reports IANS.
New research shows that 1.4 billion years ago there was enough oxygen for animals — and yet over 800 million years went by before the first animals appeared on Earth, said a team of researchers from the University of Southern Denmark, China’s National Petroleum Corporation and the University of Copenhagen, Hammarlund and Canfield.
“Sufficient oxygen in itself does not seem to be enough for animals to rise. This is indicated by our studies”, Emma Hammarlund and professor Don Canfield of Nordic Centre for Earth Evolution, University of Southern Denmark, were quoted as saying in a statement.The researchers reached this conclusion after analysing sediment samples from the Xiamaling Formation in China.
