Extinction events

BIOL2110- Vertebrate Zoology Word count: 1056 Dinosaur extinction: An analysis of events and theories that possibly led to the dinosaurs' demise. Ever since the history of Earth has been studied using fossil records, extinctions have always been the object of fascination and interest, particularly the mass extinctions that occurred throughout Earth's history. A mass extinction can be caused by disruptive global environmental changes, where large numbers of species have become extinct (Urry

years ago a mass extinction of the dinosaurs took place marking the end of the Cretaceous Period when dinosaurs lived and the beginning of the Tertiary Period when no dinosaurs remained (“Dinosaurs”). This period is also known as the Cretaceous/Tertiary, or K/T Boundary (“Dinosaurs”). Just what caused the mass extinction is still up for debate but the two main theories are either an impact from a huge asteroid or massive strain if

The Cause of the Dinosaur Extinction The biggest mystery surrounding the dinosaur is how did they die? For over 130 million years dinosaurs ruled the earth. Then 65 million years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous period, they died out. Nobody can really say what actually eliminated the species, although everyone has their very own idea. Asteroid impact, atmospheric changes (hot to cold), catastrophic eruptions and astronomical events (supernovas etc.). Some have ventured that early mammal

Rapid climate change also ends up on the suspect list of possible dinosaur extinction events. During the latter part of the Cretaceous Period continents broke up causing volcanoes to erupt and fill the sky with gas and ash resulting in a drastic climate change (“Dinosaurs Climate Change and Biodiversity”). The shifting of continents changed the Earth’s landscape, altering weather patterns and overall climate (“Dinosaur Extinction Theories”). Also, over a long period of time, climate gradually changed

The Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary that occurred around 65 million years ago marks one of the three largest mass extinctions in the past 500 million years. The hypotheses of Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary impact on Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico shows evidence in the Gulf of Mexico of turbidity currents, and giant waves occurring because of the impact. There is also other evidence that impact ejecta were distributed all over the world. The mineral that was ejected during this impact was iridium. Iridium

hypotheses put forward for the mass extinctions at the end of the Permian and Cretaceous (KT) Periods. A mass extinction is an event in which at least 25-75% of species in the global environment are eradicated in a short period of time. Where as a regional extinction event is when the extinction is confined to a specific zone. Five mass extinctions have occurred throughout time, two of the most well known of these are the Permian and Cretaceous extinction events. There are several hypotheses

definitive explanation to explain dinosaurs' extinction, there are various theories that attempt to account for the mystery of their extinction. The theories that explain their extinction at the end of the Cretaceous period are the asteroid, the volcanoes, and the major climatic changes. The most popular theory for the extinction of the dinosaurs is that the Earth was hit by an asteroid or a comet. Was the impact actually the cause behind the dinosaur’s extinction? Or was it something completely different

an asteroid collided with Earth. A large meteor-like ball striking the Earth ejecting enough debris and dust that it resulted sunlight blockage long enough to modify the atmospheres climate, executing a comparability of the “nuclear winter.” These events occurred in a sort of domino effect, plants were the first to die out, followed by the herbivores that ate them, and finally the carnivores that fed on the herbivores. Walter and Luis Alvarez from the University of California at Berkeley proposed

The last dinosaurs walked this earth over 65 million years ago. Although the cause of extinction is still a mystery. There are many leading theories why A big meteorite crashed into Earth, changing the climatic conditions so dramatically that dinosaurs could not survive,Ash and gas spewing from volcanoes suffocated many of the dinosaurs,diseases wiped out entire populations of dinosaurs food chain imbalances lead to the starvation of the dinosaurs. Why there are so much reasons and no one has

rely on the knowledge of the scientists in this field. Although there has been much research on the subject nobody has come up with a conclusive answer. And we are left to read the countless articles, all having their own opinions as to the mass extinction. One such theory is that a shift in the solar system could have caused the mass destruction. According to an article published in Nature magazine, “A bizarre wobble 65 million years ago, perturbing the orbits of Mars, Earth and Mercury, may