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August 27, 2008

I went to a pterosaur exhibition.  A lot of fossils and reconstructions were on display and I really impressed the diversity of the pterosaur(ex. body length, food, tail length and so on).  The largest ones (Quetzalcoatlus) seemed to reache more than 10m when they spreaded their wings.  The reconstruction was amazing and I could not imagine such big creatures flying!Surprised

Strange to say, though I do not like reptiles and amphibia very much, I am really interested in such ancient creatures.

A drastic environmental change on the earth by the meteorites colliction seems to be a major cause of the pterosaurs and dinosaures extinction. 

I heard that the extinction was one of the five miserable extinctions of creatures on the earth.   Does anyone know other 4 events?

Anyway, I really enjoied the trip to the age of the dinosaurs.

It was very happy time.Smile

02:43 AM Aug 28 2008

KEN

KEN
Japan

It was good that you could enjoy it!

But,I do not understand differences of a dinosaur and reptiles well.

Reptiles seem to be small dinosaurs.I think that a tortoise and the lizard are very pretty."ミーミン" which I breed is pretty.

 

 

08:42 PM Aug 27 2008

lone star

lone star
United States

 
Hi, you are very right - pterosaurs are very interesting.  Did you know that some of them are considered to have something similar to fur?  My husband and I live in Texas and have been to the place where Quetzocoatilis was originally discovered.  The name comes from the Aztec word for an ancient, mythical serpent that represented power. As per dimaggio.org, here are details of the five worst mass extinctions in Earth’s history and their possible causes, according to paleobiologist Doug Erwin of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History. Erwin said estimates of extinction rates are from the late John J. Sepkoski at the University of Chicago:

Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction, about 65 million years ago, probably caused or aggravated by impact of several-mile-wide asteroid that created the Chicxulub crater now hidden on the Yucatan Peninsula and beneath the Gulf of Mexico. Some argue for other causes, including gradual climate change or flood-like volcanic eruptions of basalt lava from India’s Deccan Traps. The extinction killed 16 percent of marine families, 47 percent of marine genera (the classification above species) and 18 percent of land vertebrate families, including the dinosaurs.

End Triassic extinction, roughly 199 million to 214 million years ago, most likely caused by massive floods of lava erupting from the central Atlantic magmatic province -- an event that triggered the opening of the Atlantic Ocean. The volcanism may have led to deadly global warming. Rocks from the eruptions now are found in the eastern United States, eastern Brazil, North Africa and Spain. The death toll: 22 percent of marine families, 52 percent of marine genera. Vertebrate deaths are unclear.

Permian-Triassic extinction, about 251 million years ago. Many scientists suspect a comet or asteroid impact, although direct evidence has not been found. Others believe the cause was flood volcanism from the Siberian Traps and related loss of oxygen in the seas. Still others believe the impact triggered the volcanism and also may have done so during the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction. The Permian-Triassic catastrophe was Earth’s worst mass extinction, killing 95 percent of all species, 53 percent of marine families, 84 percent of marine genera and an estimated 70 percent of land species such as plants, insects and vertebrate animals.

Late Devonian extinction, about 364 million years ago, cause unknown. It killed 22 percent of marine families and 57 percent of marine genera. Erwin said little is known about land organisms at the time.

Ordovician-Silurian extinction, about 439 million years ago, caused by a drop in sea levels as glaciers formed, then by rising sea levels as glaciers melted. The toll: 25 percent of marine families and 60 percent of marine genera.

 The really ancient and lost things are a fascinating area of interest!  The past gives us all

much to think about.  Hope this helps and have a great day!

 

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