Mesozoic Era BY Jordan Thompson Time This Occurred

Mesozoic Era BY: Jordan Thompson

Time This Occurred • Occurred from 245 million years ago to about 66. 4 million years ago. • It took place between the Paleozoic era and the Cenozoic era which is the era we are living in. • It was the third era that occurred.

Climate • The temperature was hotter on land on water than it was during the Paleozoic era. • The weather was more tropical. • Because of this the seas were lower causing different types of land structures for life to deal with. • This era was dryer than the Paleozoic era.

Life Recovering From Permian Extinctions • Took most of the Mesozoic era; the Triassic and Jurassic periods for the diversity of the species to repopulate and gain some balance. • The plants survived the extinction better than the animals, new types of plants formed to survive the changing conditions.

Rise of Reptiles and Dinosaurs • The dominant land animals at the end of the Permian periods were the Synapsids which was characterized by having a single hole on each side of the skull behind the eye. • Sometimes called mammal like reptiles. • The animals that developed in the Mesozoic period had to develop new bodies to survive the extremes of temperature and moisture.

Rise of Reptiles and Dinosaurs • Reptiles adapted better to the warmer dryer conditions. • Reptiles developed thick, leathery skin on their bodies and their eggs. • These dominated the land in both size and numbers. • The dinosaurs evolved from the reptiles. • During the Jurassic and cretaceous periods dinosaurs ruled the earth.

Mass Extinction • Occurred at the end of the cretaceous period. • This brought the end to the dinosaurs and tropical forests. • Researchers say that an asteroid brought the end to the Mesozoic era.

Some animals of the Mesozoic era

Sources • http: //www. fossils-facts-andfinds. com/mesozoic_era. html • http: //www. thediscoverycenter. net/images/ diplodocus. gif • http: //www. biologyblog. com/images/blogs/3 -2007/mammalfrom-mesozoic-era. jpg • http: //www. edzone. net/~sbeery/images/din osaurs. jpg