The Miocene, from the Greek words meion meaning less and kainos meaning recent, is an epoch in geological time that took place 5 - 23 million years before the present. And while this epoch was named for its small number of marine species the Miocene was a time of great change. Antarctica become an isolated land mass during the Miocene. The island of India slammed into the Asian continent in this epoch. Several mountain chains, such as the Himalayas and Andes, rose in the Miocene epoch. The earth warmed and then cooled again in the course of this geological time period. Grasslands and kelp forests first appeared. Birds and mammals rapidly evolved to their new habitat and new forms developed. The earliest migration across the Bering land connection occurred during the Miocene epoch. The Gaiman Formation at Geoparque Bryn Gwyn was created at this time in history.