5 Mass Extinction Events

By Nickd_04
  • 440 BCE

    Ordovician-silurian Extinction

    This extinction event occurred 440 Million Years ago. This was the first mass extinction event to occur on Earth. It wiped out 85% of the population at the time. This extinction event was said to be caused by global cooling and reduced sea levels. This global cooling and reduced sea levels drastically effected the tons of marine species living in warm, shallow coastal waters.
  • 365 BCE

    Devonian Extinction

    This extinction event occurred 365 million years ago. There is much controversy over what actually caused the Devonian Extinction. Some hypothesize that it was asteroid impacts, world-wide oxygen shortage, plate tectonics, or even sea level changes and climate change. Between 79-87% of all species had gone extinct. Ammonites, Dunkleosteus, Placoderm Fish, and the corals that built the Devonian reefs all went extinct.
  • 250 BCE

    Permian-triassic extinction

    This extinction event occurred 250 million years ago. It is widely believed that the warming of Earth's climate and associated changes to Oceans were the cause of the Permian-triassic extinction. The species that went extinct were shallow warm-water invertebrates. This includes Trilobites, Rugose, Tabulate corals, Blastoids, and Crinoids. This event wiped out almost 90% of the planet's species and 96% of ocean dwellers.
  • 210 BCE

    Triassic-jurassic Extinction

    This event occurred 210 million years ago. Many scientists believe that the Triassic-jurassic Extinction was caused by climate change and also rising sea levels that were caused by a sudden release of large amounts of carbon dioxide. Most of the animals that went extinct belonged to the families of Brachiopods, Gastropods, Bivalves, and marine reptiles. It is estimated that 70-75% of species became extinct in this event.
  • 65 BCE

    Cretaceous-tertiary Extinction

    This extinction event occurred 65 million years ago. It is believed that this extinction event was caused by an asteroid hitting the Earth. This extinction event wiped out species such as the Triceratops, Spinosaurus, Troodon, Saltasaurus. It is estimated that 80% of species became extinct in this extinction event.