Huge volcanic eruptions were once believed to be the cause of mass extinctions on Earth. However, new research has found that super eruptions did not necessarily result in mass extinctions.
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Articles on Mass extinctions
Displaying 1 - 20 of 40 articles
A new study found iridium, an element found in asteroids, in the rocks of the Chicxulub impact crater.
The end-Triassic mass extinction was a cataclysm for the world's prehistoric species, killed off by volcanoes that altered Earth's seas and skies. But new research shows it didn't happen when we thought.
Our new research has discovered how a series of volcanic eruptions 233 million years ago fundamentally changed life on Earth.
The historical record is full of surprises – and it could encourage conservationists to think more creatively.
The risks to nature from man-made global warming – and the imperative to act – are clear.
The analysis suggests that there was a mass extinction event at the time of the end-Permian, on land - and that it happened at the same time as the marine end-Permian extinction.
300,000 years ago, there were lots of different species of human. Now it’s only us – and we're probably the reason why.
The more we know about the animals that lived during this time, the more we can start to comprehend how species react and recover after an extinction event.
Growing evidence suggests that the extinction of the dinosaurs involved profound, complex and interconnected changes to the global systems that support life. Much like we are facing today.
Death is inevitable for individuals and also for species. With help from the fossil record, paleontologists are piecing together what might make one creature more vulnerable than another.
When environmental needs outstrip government funds, people power steps up.
A drying climate caused a mass extinction among plants, but paved the way for the ancestors of modern reptiles, mammals, and birds.
Scientists believe since 2010 we have entered the sixth period of mass extinction. CO2 emissions will change the lives of plants and animals in the next three to four decades.
The planet has seen five 'mass extinctions' over the past half billion years, but each was followed by an explosion in biodiversity.
Are we in the middle of a mass extinction caused by Homo sapiens? Past events can help us to understand the current crisis.
Mercury found in prehistoric rock bolsters the idea that volcanoes caused a mass extinction 200m years ago.
The Noril’sk nickel deposits In Russia are unique: giant volcanic eruptions 250 million years ago released colossal amounts of nickel into the atmosphere, kickstarting the Great Dying.
A geomagnetic reversal may have a severe impact on humans.
The jury is in and the debate is over: Earth’s sixth great extinction has arrived.
Top contributors
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Earth and paleo-climate scientist, Australian National University
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Distinguished Research Professor and Australian Laureate, James Cook University
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Senior Lecturer in Global Systems, University of Exeter
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Euan Ritchie is a Friend of The Conversation.
Professor in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life & Environmental Sciences, Deakin University
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Postdoctoral Researcher, The University of Queensland
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Adjunct Associate Lecturer, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland
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John Long is a Friend of The Conversation.
Strategic Professor in Palaeontology, Flinders University
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President, Center for Conservation Biology, Bing Professor of Population Studies, Stanford University
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Specialist Museum Scientist and Head of Department (National Museum, Bloemfontein) and Research Affiliate, University of the Free State
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Professor of Earth System Science, UCL
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Distinguished Professor of Geology, University of Tasmania
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Professor of Vertebrate Palaeontology, University of Bristol
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Research Associate, University of Leicester
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Professor of Geophysics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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Chancellor's Fellow in Vertebrate Palaeontology, University of Edinburgh
