Editing Cretaceous Period
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==Extinction== | ==Extinction== | ||
There was a progressive decline in biodiversity during the Maastrichtian stage of the Cretaceous Period prior to the suggested ecological crisis induced by events at the [[ | There was a progressive decline in biodiversity during the Maastrichtian stage of the Cretaceous Period prior to the suggested ecological crisis induced by events at the [[K-T Boundary]]. Furthermore, biodiversity required a substantial amount of time to recover from the K-T event, despite the probable existence of an abundance of vacant ecological niches. | ||
Despite the severity of this boundary event, there was significant variability in the rate of extinction between and within different clades. Species which depended on photosynthesis declined or became extinct because of the reduction in solar energy reaching the Earth's surface due to atmospheric particles blocking the sunlight. As is the case today, photosynthesizing organisms, such as phytoplankton and land plants, formed the primary part of the food chain in the late Cretaceous. Evidence suggests that herbivorous animals, which depended on plants and plankton as their food, died out as their food sources became scarce; consequently, top predators such as Tyrannosaurus rex also perished. | Despite the severity of this boundary event, there was significant variability in the rate of extinction between and within different clades. Species which depended on photosynthesis declined or became extinct because of the reduction in solar energy reaching the Earth's surface due to atmospheric particles blocking the sunlight. As is the case today, photosynthesizing organisms, such as phytoplankton and land plants, formed the primary part of the food chain in the late Cretaceous. Evidence suggests that herbivorous animals, which depended on plants and plankton as their food, died out as their food sources became scarce; consequently, top predators such as Tyrannosaurus rex also perished. |