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Table 1 Earth’s five past great mass extinctions

From: Incorporating the current sixth great mass extinction theme into evolution education, science education, and environmental education research and standards

Great mass extinction

Number

Date extinction occurred

Cause of extinction

Loss of life

Ordovician-Silurian extinction

1st

Approximately 439 million years ago

Fluctuations in sea level; extensive glaciations; global warming

‘Approximately 25% of the families and nearly 60% of the genera of marine organisms were lost.

Late Devonian extinction

2nd

Approximately 364 million years ago

Global cooling after bolide impacts may have been responsible

‘22% of marine families and 57% of marine genera, including nearly all jawless fishes, disappeared.’

Permian-Triassic extinction

3rd

Approximately 251 million years ago

Causes are debated. The leading candidate is flood volcanism. This led to profound climate change. The volcanism may have been initiated by a bolide impact

‘95% of all species (marine as well as terrestrial) were lost, including 53% of marine families, 84% of marine genera, and 70% of land plants, insects, and vertebrates.’

End Triassic extinction

4th

Approximately 199 to 214 million years ago

‘Opening of the Atlantic Ocean by seafloor spreading related to massive lava floods that caused significant global warming.’

‘Marine organisms were most strongly affected (22% of marine families and 53% of marine genera were lost), but terrestrial organisms also experienced much extinction.’

Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction

5th

Approximately 65 million years ago

Causes are debated. Possible causes include a giant asteroid impact in the Gulf of Mexico and climatic changes resulting from volcanic floods in India

‘16% of families, 47% of genera of marine organisms, and 18% of vertebrate families were lost.’

  1. Notes: (1) The first and second great mass extinctions ‘may not qualify because new analyses show that the magnitude of the extinctions in these events was not significantly higher than in several other events’ (Wake and Vredenburg 2008, 11466). See Alroy (2008) for the specific details associated with this research. (2) The direct quotes are from (Wake and Vredenburg 2008, 11466). Wake and Vredenburg’s original sources were Erwin (2001) and Jablonski (1995). (3) This figure has been modified and reproduced with permission from Wagler 2011b.