The Wolstonian Stage is a middle
Pleistocene stage of the
geological history of Earth that precedes the
Ipswichian Stage (
Eemian Stage in
Europe) and follows the
Hoxnian Stage in the British Isles. The Wolstonian Stage apparently includes three periods of glaciation. The Wolstonian Stage is temporally analogous to the
Warthe Stage and
Saalian Stage in northern Europe and the
Riss glaciation in the
Alps, and temporally equivalent to all of the
Illinoian Stage and the youngest part of the
Pre-Illinoian Stage in North America. It is contemporaneous with the North American Pre-Illinoian A, Early Illinoian, and Late Illinoian glaciations. Britain became an Island during this period (350,000 years ago). It started 374,000 years ago and ended 130,000 years ago. ==Etymology==