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We do n’t sleep with precisely when thefirst creature on Earthappeared , but it ’s thought to be around 700 million years ago . Around 541 million geezerhood ago , at the beginning of the Cambrian period , hundreds of thousands of new specie appeared within a distich of about 20 million yr — an consequence known as theCambrian blowup . Since then , meg — or possibly one million million — of species have come and gone . Scientists estimate that99.9 % of all creatures that ever lived have gone nonextant .

researcher thinkthere are now around 7.7 millionanimal species exist on Earth , with thousands more name every year . But specie are also run nonextant at an alarming pace , with many likely go away before they ’ve even been formally realize . Many scientist even say we ’re move into asixth mass extinction .

Funny burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia) tilts its head outside its burrow on Marco Island, Florida.

How much do you know about the animals presently living on our planet ? Take our quiz to find out . If you need a touch , reach the yellow button . Good circumstances !

Morescience quizzes

— Mammoth quiz : try your noesis of the ice age beasts

— Evolution quiz : Can you naturally pick out the correct answers ?

— Orca quiz : Will you dip or drown ?

Young African elephant bull flares it�s trunk and tusks in the air.

— Shark quiz : How much do you know about these iconic ocean star ?

— Crocodile quiz : Test your cognition on the prehistoric predators

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Two young lions (Panthera leo) in the Masai Mara National Park in Kenya.

a close-up of a fly

Stonehenge, Salisbury, UK, July 30, 2024; Stunning aerial view of the spectacular historical monument of Stonehenge stone circles, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Sunda island pit viper ( Trimeresurus insularis ) on a branch. Photo taken in Jakarta.

A radio telescope with imaginary blue lines coming from it

a hoatzin bird leaping in the air with blue sky background

Closeup of an Asian needle ant worker carrying prey in its mouth on a wooden surface.

Photo shows an egg hatching out of a �genital pore� in a snail�s neck.

side-by-side images of a baboon and a gorilla

a tiger looks through a large animal�s ribcage

Mount Vesuvius behind the ruins of pompeii.

a painting of vikings at sea

a rendering of a bed floating in the clouds

A woman exercising on a rowing machine while observing her workout stats on an adjacent monitor