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No one knows for sure. Some people believe that an asteroid earlier in time hit Earth and caused massive climate change that killed off reptiles, but spared dinosaurs. Others believe that it was simply climate change.

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How did the Phacops rana become extinct?

The Phacops rana, a species of trilobite, became extinct during the end-Devonian mass extinction, which was likely caused by a combination of climate change, volcanic activity, and a drop in sea levels. These environmental changes likely disrupted the trilobite's habitats and food sources, leading to their extinction.


What are facts about the devonian period?

The Devonian Period is a part of the Paleozoic Era, which covers the time from 541 to 252.17 million years ago. It began with the Cambrian explosion, in which most phyla of life began, and ended with the mass extinction called the Permian-Triassic extinction event.


What caused the last mass extinction?

The Permian mass extinction occurred about 248 million years ago and was the greatest mass extinction ever recorded in earth history exterminating more than 95% of all life on EarthTwo theories have been proposed - the impact of a huge meteorite or comet over 10 kilometres in diameter, or a massive and prolonged volcanic eruption. The volcanic theory appears to be taking the lead at the present time.


When was the first mass extinction?

540 million years ago was the first mass extinction


What percent of earths species died off at the end of the paleozoic era?

Statistical analysis of the fossil record indicates somewhere around 35% of all species disappeared at the end of the cretaceous. (There is considerable margin for error in that figure--we don't have a good estimate for the number of species that exist today, even). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cretaceous%E2%80%93Tertiary_extinction_event

Related Questions

Is the Devonian time before or after the mass extinction?

Which mass extinction? There have been five such events. The first one, the Ordovician-Silurian extinction event occurred before the Devonian. The Late Devonian event occurred during the Devonian. All other mass extinctions occurred after the Devonian.


What caused the extinction of the devonian time?

superstorm


What caused the Devonian Extinction?

Evidence leads most paleontologists to believe the Devonian mass extinction event to be caused by global cooling, triggered by a glaciation event on Godwana. A less-proven theory states the extinction could have also been caused by meteoric impact.Background Info:After the Ordovician mass extinction event around 440 - 450 million years ago, surviving groups of species continued to diversify evolutionarily into what became the Silurian and Devonian periods.The Devonian period spanned from 408-360 million years ago, in which came the first sharks, bony fish, and ammonoids (a type of predatory mollusk) in the ocean, as well as terrestrial amphibians, insects, and true land plants.


What are the extinction of animals in the very distant past?

There were five major extinction events in the past. They are called the Cretaceous-Tertiary (or K-T) extinction event, the late Devonian mass extinction, the Permian mass extinction, the Ordovician-Silurian mass extinction and the Triassic-Jurassic mass extinction event.


What caused each mass extinction?

Asteroids.


What is another name for the Devonian period?

I have never known it to be called anything but "The Devonian", but one might speculate it could be called "The First Flowering", as the Devonian was when there was the first massive increase in sea creatures, as well as the first heavy vegetation on the surface of earth. The Devonian ended with a mass extinction event that is still not understood. There is some discussion of the "Alamo Impact Event" being connected with it, but most scientists believe that was too small, and too far before the mass extinction (3.5 million years) to have been the cause.


Relationship between extinct and mass extinction?

Mass extinction is when many animals go extinct within a short period of time caused by the same variables/factors leading to the mass extinction.


What were the 5 major extinction events in earth history?

They are the end-Ordovician extinction, end-Devonian extinction, end-Permian extinction, the Triassic extinction, end-Cretaceous extinction.


How do you use the word mass extinction in a sentence?

We are still not sure what caused the mass extinction of the dinosaurs, though an asteroid impact seems to be the popular theory.Scientists believe we may be heading towards another mass extinction event.


What may have caused the first mass extinction 65 million years ago?

The leading theory for the first mass extinction 65 million years ago is a catastrophic event such as an asteroid impact. This event is believed to have led to environmental changes that caused the extinction of the dinosaurs and many other species.


What are the areas on the geologic time scale?

Paleozoic Era- Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, Permian Mass Extinction (Permian-Tertiary) 248 mya Mesozoic Era- Triassic, Jurassic, Cretaceous Mass Extinction (K-T) 65 mya Cenozoic- Tertiary, Quaternary


What is some catastrophic events that caused periods to come to an end?

mass extinction