- Planet Earth - Evolution ## Animals may have evolved 200 million years earlier than previously thought, new study suggests After using a technique called molecular clock analysis, researchers have proposed that the origin of animals could be 200 million years earlier than thought. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. - Copy link - Facebook - Reddit - Pinterest - Flipboard The first animals may have appeared on Earth hundreds of millions years earlier than their fossils suggest, a new modeling study suggests. Previously, the…