View source for Template:Geological range/doc

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==Usage==
 <code><nowiki>{{</nowiki>Geological range|'''first appearance''' (required)|''last appearance''|''text to display''|earliest=''earliest putative fossil''|latest=''latest putative fossil''|ref=''References''|prefix=''anything to display before the range''|PS=''anything to display after the range''}}</code>

: '''Note''' The first parameter (bold above) may not be omitted; in particular it is an error to specify only {{para|earliest}} and/or {{para|latest}}. Italic parameters are optional, bold required.
{{taxobox
|name = Example
|fossil_range = {{Geological range|Carboniferous | early Cretaceous|earliest=Ordovician}}
|regnum = [[Animalia]]
|genus = ''Rangea''
|species = ''Rangea examplus''
}}
Illustrates the fossil range of a taxon, the geological range of a stratigraphic unit, or other ranges on a geological timescale. Intended for use in {{tn|taxobox}}es, {{tl|Infobox rockunit}}s, and other infoboxes. For pre-Phanerozoic ages, see {{tl|Long fossil range}}.

You can give a numeric range, or specify the periods involved. The range will be quoted in text before the timeline, unless you specify a third parameter—leaving it blank will result in no text being provided.

To illustrate the range when it spans before the [[Ediacaran]] (i.e. deep into the Precambrian), you should use [[Template:Long fossil range]], which works in exactly the same way as documented here.

You can also specify "earliest" and "latest" to add a "ghost" bar beyond the accepted fossil range. You can use these parameters for whatever you like; they may be useful in the case of living fossils such as the [[coelacanth]], where you may wish to specify <code>latest=0</code> to make the bar faintly extend to the present; they may also be useful where "earliest" fossils are not universally accepted—for instance, the [[octocorals]] only have a good fossil record from the Tertiary, but there are claims of Cambrian representatives. In this case, you may wish to specify <code>earliest=middle Cambrian</code>.

==Examples==
<pre>{{Geological range|Permian}}</pre>
<div style="text-align:center">{{Geological range|Permian}}</div>

<pre>{{Geological range|Permian|Jurassic}}</pre>
<div style="text-align:center">{{Geological range|Permian|Jurassic}}</div>

<pre>{{Geological range|Permian|Jurassic|earliest=Devonian|latest=Cretaceous}}</pre>
<div style="text-align:center">{{Geological range|Permian|Jurassic|earliest=Devonian|latest=Cretaceous}}</div>

<pre>{{Geological range|68|65|earliest=Permian|latest=0|PS= (see article for discussion)}}</pre>
<div style="text-align:center">{{Geological range|68|65|earliest=Permian|latest=0|PS= (see article for discussion)}}</div>

<pre>{{Geological range|68|65.5|late Cretaceous}}</pre>
<div style="text-align:center">{{Geological range|68|65.5|late Cretaceous}}</div>

<pre>{{Geological range|68|65|}}</pre>
<div style="text-align:center">{{Geological range|68|65|}}</div>

If you receive an error when specifying a period name, check you've spelt it right; if so, it probably isn't yet incorporated into the templates {{tl|next period}} and {{tl|period start}}. This is really easy to do, so feel free to add the period yourself to make future editors' lives easier!

==See also==
For organisms whose fossil range extends significantly before the Ediacaran, use [[Template:Long fossil range]].
*[[Template:Geological range/linked]]

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