with the first steps in the evolution of soft-bodied metazoans, and also made a myriad of habitats available for them; this led to the so-called Cambrian explosion, the rapid evolution of skeletalized metazoans. Trilobites originated in the Neoproterozoic and began to diversify before the break-up of Pannotia 600–550 Ma, as evidenced by their ubiquitous presence in the fossil record, and the lack of vicariance patterns in their lineage. See also Plate tectonics Supercontinent cycle Pan-African orogeny References Notes Sources External links An image showing Pannotia according to Christopher Scotese. (it is referred to as the late Precambrian Supercontinent in the image). (see Fig. 3 for an Early Ordovician (490 Ma) reconstruction) Former supercontinents Ediacaran Plate tectonics Proterozoic