Articles tagged with Mass Extinction
A team of scientists found that massive volcanic eruptions may have caused the end-Ordovician extinction, which wiped out 85% of marine animal species. The eruptions released sulfur dioxide and carbon dioxide, interacting in complex ways to affect the climate.
A team of scientists suggests that massive volcanic eruptions triggered the first mass extinction event, which occurred at the end of the Ordovician period. The researchers analyzed mercury levels in sedimentary rocks from North America and southern China, finding a correlation between Hg enrichments and the mass extinction.
The study found two distinct extinction events linked to climate change, which slowed the world's recovery after the 'Great Dying'. The evidence suggests that modern ocean life evolved during this recovery period, and may respond similarly to current climate change.
Researchers found that a 80,000-year ice age caused by volcanic eruptions led to the loss of 95% of marine species during the Permian-Triassic boundary. The study challenges previous theories attributing mass extinctions to warming temperatures.
A team of researchers has discovered a vast array of exceptionally preserved fossils, including delicate skeletons and soft tissues, from the immediate aftermath of the Ordovician mass extinction. The Anji Biota records an astonishing range of diverse sponge species, with many thriving in large and complex ecosystems.
Researchers from the University of Bath will investigate mass extinction using genetic and fossil analyses to understand patterns of extinction and species formation. They hope to find evidence of higher extinction rates before the K-Pg boundary, shedding light on recovery rates after the event.
Researchers confirm massive volcanic eruptions occurred 170-90 million years ago, triggering environmental catastrophes and mass extinctions. The study suggests interaction between deep mantle upwellings and mid-ocean ridges enabled the formation of these massive eruptions.
The Permian-Triassic extinction event saw 96% of marine species and 70% of terrestrial life die off due to explosive volcanic eruptions in Siberia. The Arctic region reveals clues about the delayed recovery, with evidence of a significant nutrient gap during this period.
A new study of fossil fishes from Middle Triassic sediments on Lake Lugano finds that biological communities recovered within a few million years after the great mass extinction event. The research identifies two new species of ancient fish with distinct ecological niches, suggesting that ecosystems were already recovering.
Scientists have discovered that iron-rich, low oxygen waters played a key role in delaying the recovery of life on Earth after the Permian-Triassic Boundary extinction. The study found that while toxic sulphides were not present, the oceans were rich in iron, which restricted marine life recovery.
A new marine reptile fossil, Sclerocormus parviceps, challenges the idea of slow evolution. The ichthyosauriform had a short snout and whip-like tail, suggesting rapid diversification at the end of the Lower Triassic period.
Scientists found that ancient mammal relatives, known as therapsids, adapted to drastic climate change by breeding younger and having shorter life expectancies. This allowed them to thrive in the aftermath of mass extinction events.
Scientists studying ancient mammal relatives known as therapsids found that they had shorter life expectancies and bred at younger ages to survive the drastic climate change. This adaptation allowed them to thrive in the aftermath of the Permo-Triassic Mass Extinction, which pushed billions of tons of carbon into the atmosphere.
Researchers found that ancient mammal relatives, therapsids, had shorter life expectancies and bred at younger ages after a mass extinction event. This adaptation allowed them to survive and thrive in the new environment, with simulations showing a 40% increase in survival chances.
A Yale-led study suggests that species rarity may be a key indicator of mass extinctions, which could provide an early warning system for the current biotic crisis. The researchers propose that monitoring changes in species and ecosystems can help scientists pinpoint mass extinctions before they become catastrophic.
A new study supports the Lilliput effect, where mass extinctions lead to temporary size reductions in species. Smaller vertebrates with higher reproductive rates and shorter lifespans were more resilient to extinction events, while large vertebrates struggled to adapt.
A 359 million-year-old mass extinction event triggered a drastic transformation in Earth's vertebrate community, with smaller fish dominating the oceans for at least 40 million years. The findings suggest that small, fast-reproducing fish possessed an evolutionary advantage over larger animals in the disturbed environment.
Researchers link large igneous provinces to extinction events and global warming due to greenhouse gases. Improved isotope dating confirms the long-proposed link between LIPs and catastrophic climatic change.
New study finds a cyclical pattern between impact craters and extinction events every 26 million years, suggesting a cause-and-effect relationship. This cosmic cycle is linked to periodic motion of the sun and planets, affecting life on Earth over the past 260 million years.
Researchers used fossil data to analyze stability of ecological communities before and during the Permian-Triassic Extinction. The study found that locally stable webs increased while diversity richness declined. Stability was attributed to functional organization within species groups, not biodiversity loss.
Researchers found the fossil record of the earliest North American coral species that reappeared after a mass extinction event, providing insights into survival and recovery. The study reveals that corals took over 20 million years to recover from the event, which was likely caused by massive global climate change.
A new study documents rare early Jurassic corals from New York Canyon in west-central Nevada, shedding light on coral recovery after the end-Triassic mass extinction event. The findings provide valuable information on biotic responses during this critical period.
The world's first known mass extinction, which occurred around 540 million years ago, is now believed to have been caused by the emergence of complex animals capable of altering their environments. These 'ecosystem engineers' changed the planet in ways that made it difficult for earlier multicellular organisms like Ediacarans to survive.
A team of computer scientists found that mass extinctions can speed up evolution in robots, leading to more efficient and creative problem-solving. The study, published in PLOS ONE, used simulations to demonstrate how extinction events promote the emergence of novel features and abilities.
A recent study found that Hawaii has lost a significant portion of its unique and diverse invertebrate species, with only 15 out of 325 recognized Amastridae species still alive. Globally, the team estimated that up to 14% of Earth's animal species may have been lost due to human activities.
Researchers use tree rings to date arroyo sedimentary beds and combine data with aerial imagery and LiDAR to reconstruct the history of these arroyos. The study reveals that arroyos are unstable features that shift between broad floodplains and incised channels, and that upstream progression is limited to specific locations.
A new review in Science cautions that the loss and decline of animals are contributing to what appears to be the early days of the planet's sixth mass biological extinction event. Human activity and habitat loss are driving the die-off, with large animals facing the highest rate of decline.
A new analysis of cougar teeth found significant variation in dietary habits among the species, suggesting a more generalized approach that allowed them to survive the Pleistocene mass extinction. This contrasts with the more finicky diets of extinct cousins like saber-tooth cats and American lions.
A new study reveals that reef fish diversified into two distinct groups of fish, with the first group arriving around 70-90 million years ago, during a time when coral reefs were built by mollusks called rudists. By 50 million years ago, modern coral reefs and their inhabitants had largely taken shape.
After a 90% extinction event, large aquatic predators like crocodile-like amphibians emerged soon, followed by plesiosaurs and ichthyosaurs. Researchers found that apex predators recovered rapidly in the Early Triassic.
Scientists analyzed bryozoan species before and after a mass extinction event, finding no significant change in body length. Maximum colony size declined in three out of four surviving types, suggesting the Lilliput effect may not be universal across organisms.
A 250 million-year-old study suggests that Pangea integration led to environmental deterioration, causing the biggest mass extinction. The integration resulted in global-scale volcanic eruptions, greenhouse gas emissions, and changes in ocean chemistry, ultimately devastating land and marine ecosystems.
Researchers found that low doses of hydrogen sulfide enhance plant health, resulting in increased crop yields nearly doubling. This could lead to improved food supplies and plentiful stock for biofuel production.
Researchers found that pre-Cretaceous ecosystem changes and environmental factors led to more fragile communities in late Cretaceous North America. The study's findings suggest that human-made changes to modern ecosystems could worsen their ability to withstand disturbances, emphasizing the importance of understanding ecological function.
Scientists discovered extreme temperatures in the tropics during the end-Permian mass extinction, lasting five million years. The lengthy devastation was caused by a temperature rise of 50-60°C on land and 40°C at sea-surface.
Scientists discovered Lepidopteris baodensis, a 251-million-year-old seed fern with subepidermal swellings that may have allowed it to survive in hot, arid environments. The finding expands knowledge of the genus' biology and taxonomy, as well as its relationship to other plant species.
A new study suggests that mass extinctions permanently alter the pace of evolution, with species diversification rates shifting after catastrophes. Researchers analyzed bivalve mollusks and found that origination rates increased or decreased suddenly at mass extinction events, reflecting a permanent change in evolutionary speed.
The end-Permian crisis, the most dramatic biological crisis in Earth's history, lasted for around 10 million years to fully recover. Life recovered slowly due to intense environmental shocks and grim conditions on Earth.
Researchers found that ammonoids' initial strategy of producing many offspring led to their rapid proliferation after mass extinctions. However, this same strategy may have contributed to their demise at the end of the Cretaceous period.
A new study links the end-Ordovician mass extinction to nutrient-driven anoxia in the global ocean. The research overthrows century-old knowledge on why marine animals faced their first major challenges, highlighting the tight coupling between life evolution and oxygen dynamics.
A Caltech-led team used a framework to analyze fossil occurrences and sedimentary rock records to determine that habitat loss due to falling sea levels and cooling of tropical oceans were the primary causes of the Late Ordovician mass extinction. The study largely ruled out a hypothesis suggesting a record bias as an explanation for th...
A study of ancient graptoloid populations found that they did not rapidly develop new physical traits after a mass extinction event. Instead, the researchers suggest an evolutionary lag occurred, with limited morphological innovation continuing for approximately 2 million years.
The Siberian Traps volcanic eruptions could have released gases that damaged the ozone layer and caused acid rain, leading to a drastic decline in ecological diversity.
A team of researchers found that metazoan-dominated reefs existed again in the US southwest just 1.5 million years after the devastating Permian mass extinction, challenging the previous assumption of a five-million-year recovery time frame.
A new model suggests that Siberian mantle plume contained recycled oceanic crust, leading to exceptional magmatic eruptions and mass extinction. The team's study provides new insights into the origin of the Siberian Traps and their relation to the Permo-Triassic mass extinction event.
A population of the freshwater limpet Rhodacmea filosa, thought to be extinct since the mid-20th century, has been rediscovered in a tributary of the Coosa River in Alabama. The discovery is a conservation success story and highlights the importance of preserving biodiversity in rapidly changing environments.
A 360-million-year-old mass extinction event devastated fish populations, allowing crinoids to thrive and diversify. The study found that the ripple effects of this extinction event could last millions of years.
Researchers estimate that if currently threatened species go extinct, the sixth mass extinction could arrive within 3 to 22 centuries. However, they also believe it's not too late to save critically endangered mammals and other species through conservation efforts.
A study published in Nature warns that Earth is on the brink of a mass extinction like those that have occurred five times during the past 540 million years. The study finds cause for hope and alarm, with critically endangered mammals facing an even greater risk of extinction within three generations.
Researchers discovered a direct link between Late Ordovician mass extinction and cooling climate, contradicting previous theories. They used new paleothermometer method to determine average temperatures during glacial periods, marking the first time overcoming ice-volume effect for ancient ocean analysis.
Scientists confirm asteroid ended the age of dinosaurs through a review of geological evidence, including the Chicxulub crater. The research group rejects an alternate hypothesis that long-term volcanic activity caused mass extinctions.
A Brown University-led team discovered that massive volcanic eruptions led to a spike in atmospheric carbon dioxide, wiping out half of plant species and decimating crurotarsans. This allowed early theropods, including dinosaurs, to become dominant in the animal world.
A team of researchers, including UC San Diego's Richard Norris, presents new evidence linking an asteroid impact to the mass extinction that wiped out dinosaurs and other organisms 65.5 million years ago. The study highlights a unique layer of debris in deep-sea sediments that correlates with abrupt environmental changes.
The asteroid impact hypothesis has gained overwhelming acceptance within the scientific community, and new evidence from ocean drilling and continental sites confirms its validity. The Chicxulub impact in Mexico is believed to have caused an abrupt and major decrease in productivity and species diversity at the K-Pg boundary.
A team of scientists from the University of Granada compared the Aznalcóllar spillage to the Cretaceous mass extinction event, finding similarities in sudden impact and high levels of toxic compounds. The study suggests that ecosystems can recover rapidly following such disasters, with evidence of life re-emerging within years.
A new theory proposes that toxic algae may have caused the world's great species annihilations during five of Earth's largest mass extinctions. Algae blooms can kill thousands of fish and poison shellfish, with some plants on land also picking up toxins through their roots.
A team of researchers found that some microscopic marine organisms recovered within a century after the mass extinction, contradicting previous estimates of millions of years. This discovery suggests that the atmosphere cleared quickly, allowing ecosystems to recover from the impact's effects.
A team of experts, including Dr Chris Wade from the University of Nottingham, have presented evidence that planktonic foraminifera may have survived mass extinction by taking refuge on the sea floor. Genetic and geochemical data show that these species can thrive in both surface waters and sediment habitats.
A previously unknown giant volcanic eruption in China led to global mass extinction 260 million years ago, according to a new study published in Science. The eruption unleashed around half a million cubic kilometres of lava, causing massive cloud formation and acid rain that cooled the planet.
Early human fossils found in 500-million-year-old rocks show that ancient pioneers may have carried shells on their backs to breathe, providing insights into how they adapted to life on land. Researchers also discovered large perturbations of the carbon and sulfur cycle accompanying a mass extinction event in South China and linked vol...