Product Description
Some 250 million years ago, the earth suffered the greatest biological crisis in its history. Around 95% of all living species died out--a global catastrophe far greater than the dinosaurs' demise 65 million years ago. How this happened remains a mystery. But there are many competing theories. Some blame huge volcanic eruptions that covered an area as large as the continental United States; others argue for sudden changes in ocean levels and chemistry, including burps of methane gas; and still others cite the impact of an extraterrestrial object, similar to what caused the dinosaurs' extinction.Extinction is a paleontological mystery story. Here, the world's foremost authority on the subject provides a fascinating overview of the evidence for and against a whole host of hypotheses concerning this cataclysmic event that unfolded at the end of the Permian. After setting the scene, Erwin introduces the suite of possible perpetrators and the types of evidence paleontologists seek. He then unveils the actual evidence--moving from China, where much of the best evidence is found; to a look at extinction in the oceans; to the extraordinary fossil animals of the Karoo Desert of South Africa. Erwin reviews the evidence for each of the hypotheses before presenting his own view of what happened.Although full recovery took tens of millions of years, this most massive of mass extinctions was a powerful creative force, setting the stage for the development of the world as we know it today.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.0 based on 18 reviews)

A real science mystery by D. J. Nardi (Washington, DC)

5 Stars
May 18, 2009
This book reads like a murder mystery, with the victim being 95% of all marine life and 70% of terrestrial vertebrates species. This crime, the Permian Extinction, occurred over 250 million years ago but still has not been solved. The author Douglas Erwin, a paleobiologist who has been working on the extinction for the past few decades, identifies identifies possible culprits and the known evidence, but ultimately comes to no conclusion. This makes the book both exciting and fresh (even three years after its initial publication). Erwin names six possible culprits to the extinction: 1) a meteor/comet impact, similar to the one that killed the dinosaurs; 2) climatic changes from massive volcanic flood basalts in Siberia; 3) invasion of invasive species following the creation of the supercontinent Pangea; 4) glaciations causing global cooling and a fall in sea level; 5) disappearance of oxygen from the oceans (anoxia); and 6) a combination of the above. Because the extinction happened so quickly (estimated less than 160,000 years), he suggests that explanation 3, 4, and 6 are less likely. He also isn't convinced by the evidence of a large meteor impact (1) around this time. Furthermore, explanation 5 does not account for the extinctions on land. Thus, the book tentatively concludes that the volcanic flood basalts seem to have played the largest role in the extinction, perhaps by causing runaway global warming. This is a science book, not a book about the scientists. Too many popular books about paleontology, especially those written by journalists, seem to focus on the scientists themselves rather than the actual science. Fortunately, Erwin goes deep into the scientific evidence and presents detailed arguments for each explanation. Perhaps more important than the hard scientific evidence (which may well become outdated by the time you read the book, if it hasn't already), Erwin does a magnificent job showing the process and reasoning that goes into collecting and interpreting the evidence. Rather than state his interpretation of the evidence, Erwin takes the reader through the existing evidence and the questions or concerns he has with it. Most of the book consists of his summary of paleobiologists' toolkit and the research on the Permian extinction. He only brings the evidence together to discuss the potential culprits in the last few chapters. However, by writing the book this way, the reader is able to assess the evidence for himself. Erwin's style also encourages readers to keep a healthy sense of doubt, especially since more than once he admits his past positions on the extinction were probably wrong. In fact, he does suggest that more evidence regarding a meteor impact has recently emerged and may contradict his "preferred" theory. Overall this is a very interesting book, but is a long read, especially for those readers who - like me - have no formal training in paleontology or geology. However, the books provides a great science education for those willing to put in the time.

Ultimately Disappointed by Andy Koenigsberg (Westborough, MA)

3 Stars
May 04, 2009
Educated as a geologist, I have read extensively on the issue of mass extinctions and am familiar with the many arguments about the ambiguities of just what happened at the end of the Permian. Taken in by the title of the book, I hoped to get better educated on what the leading hypotheses are. I did get that from this book but was ultimately disappointed that Erwin would not plant a flag in the ground about how HE really felt about this issue. In that respect, the sub-title is misleading. Instead of "How Life on Earth Nearly Ended 250 Million Years Ago", it should have said "Ideas about How Life on Earth Nearly Ended 250 Million Years Ago". Erwin also does not go into some of the more intriguing concepts bandied about regarding the recovery from that extinction. For instance, why is it that the major reptilian group to emerge from the event, the dinosaurs, were so efficient at using oxygen? Evolutionary pressures driven by an extended period of low atmospheric oxygen favored them it seems - yet he does not really discuss this aspect at all. I was very impressed with how Erwin brought together the details of the work now being done at the Permian Triassic boundary but I did not find the book very satisfying from the larger perspective.

Not what I expected by frater SODDI

3 Stars
February 11, 2009
The Permian-Triassic End Event, 256 MY ago, caused the extinction of 95% of this planet's marine species and 70% of all land species. Some of what survived became the big famous dinosaurs. Some of what survived became US. If you're looking for a book on this topic that DOES NOT talk much at all about the species being extincted (except for little tiny marine organisms like brachiopods and bryzoans), this is the book for you. Lots and lots of info on Siberian flood basalts and carbonate sedimentation. The book's main topic is the causes of the extinction, so it is mainly paleo-geology, rather than paleobiology.

disappointing by jdown (Stillwater OK USA)

1 Stars
December 31, 2008
Not a complete waste of time, but close. SPOILER ALERT: by the end of Irwin's book, all we learn is that he has no idea what caused the end-Permian extinction. Moreover, since the truly remarkable work of his colleagues and him has not provided the answer, we will never know just how it happened. Irwin likewise concludes that the greatest extinction of all time was quite irrelevant and had no effect on evolutionary patterns that followed. Worst of all, the writing style is quite dry, not easy to read or well-written for the layman. I cannot imagine who he was writing for.

Hand a copy of your book to an English major, Prof. Erwin. by Connie Turner (Kansas City)

4 Stars
November 01, 2008
I am loving this book but besides all my highlighting of truly interesting text, I am having to edit a lot of punctuation, style and grammar errors. Yes, I'm a bit obsessive but I'm wondering Prof. Erwin, why aren't you? This is the fourth printing. . . these errors should be gone by now. Are you as lackadaisical about your geology?

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