PP30. Mass Extinctions

Life sciences Grade 10
CAPS: structured, clear, practical

Helping teachers unlock the power of NCS
KNOWLEDGE AREA: Diversity, change and continuity

Topic 12: History of life on Earth
Mass extinction
CAPS SPECIFIC AIMS
1. Knowing Life Sciences
2. Investigating Phenomena in Life
Sciences
3. Appreciating and Understanding the
History, Importance and Applications
of Life Sciences in Society
Specific Skills
Access information Apply knowledge in new contexts
Select key ideas Use knowledge in a new way
Recall information Analyse information/data
Describe knowledge of NS Critically evaluate scientific information
Build a conceptual framework Recognise relationships between existing
Organise or reorganise knowledge knowledge and new ideas
Write summaries Identify assumptions
Develop flow charts and mind maps Categorise information
Recognise patterns and trends
Agenda or Summary Layout
A summary of the topics discussed
Discussion
One Item
1 Explanation of Mass
extinctions
Discussion Item Two
2 The five major mass extinctions
Discussion Item Three

3 Two particular Extinctions
4 Discussion Item Four

Sixth major extinction?
Mass Extinctions
What are they?
Extinction refers to the death of all the organisms of a species so
that not even a single member of the species exists.
Remember that there are two types of extinctions.
They are natural and man made extinctions.
Natural extinctions usually occur at a constantly lower rate,
almost the same rate at which new species are formed
But there are times when more than 50% of the earth’s species
vanishes in a geological instant of a few million years.
This is called a mass extinction.
The Five Major Mass Extinctions.
The first mass extinction
The earliest known mass extinction occurred about 439

million years ago and was caused by a drop in sea
levels.
The sea levels dropped because of the formation of

glaciers.
The sea levels rises as the glaciers started to melt.

The second and third mass extinction
The second extinction occurred about 364 million years

ago.
It is not known what caused this extinction.
The third extinction occurred about 250 million years

ago.
It may have been caused by: comet or asteroid impact

or volcanic floods
The fourth mass extinction
The fourth mass extinction occurred about 199 million

to 214 million years ago.
It was caused when volcanoes erupted releasing large

amounts of lava.
This is turn lead to global warming.

The fifth mass extinction
The fifth mass extinction occurred about 65 million

years ago.
There are several possible causes:

• asteroid impact on the Yucatan Peninsula which is in
the Gulf of Mexico.
• gradual climate change
• volcanic eruptions.
Two Particular Extinctions
Of the five mass extinctions two stand out .
These were the one that occurred 250 million years ago and the
one that occurred 65 million years ago.
The mass extinction that occurred 250 million years ago was the
most serious one.
The most famous mass extinction occurred 65 million years ago,

the extinction of the dinosaurs.
The mass extinction of 250 million years ago.
During this extinction almost 90% all species became

extinct.
This included: 84% of marine genera and about
70% of
land species plants, insects and vertebrate animals.
The dinosaurs appeared about 245 million years ago.
They flourished during the Jurassic Period.
This period occurred about 208 to 143 million years ago.
The dinosaurs dominated the land and air and some of them
even lived in water.
The mass extinction of 65 million years - Causes
Scientists are not sure about the exact cause of this mass
extinction.
However the following are some of the conditions that

occurred during this time:
o there was a sharp drop in temperature.
o the water of the seas evaporates .
The mass extinction of 65 million years - Causes
Many of the plants , the source of food for the dinosaurs died
out.
Iridium was found in a thin layer of clay.

Iridium is an element that is very rare on earth but common in
meteorites.
A huge crater was found in the Caribbean Sea.
There were many volcanic eruptions in India.
.
The mass extinction of 65 million years ago - Hypothesis
The above evidence lead to the formation of three hypothesis.
The most common hypothesis is that an asteroid crashed onto

Earth, causing global climate change.
The climate change lead to the mass extinction.
The layer of iridium and the large crater in the Caribbean sea
support this hypothesis
The mass extinction of 65 million years ago- Hypothesis 2
This hypothesis deals with the continental drift theory,
movement of continents away from each other.
It is believed that the continental drift led to the

climate change.
The mass extinction of 65 million years ago – Hypothesis 3
This hypothesis deals with the volcanic activity in India.
It is believed that this volcanic activity released particles into the
air.
These particles blocked out the sun for a long period of time.
This resulted in the lowering of temperatures on Earth.
Therefore many species died out because they could not adapt
to the low temperature.
The mass extinction of 65 million years
Scientists accept all three theories.
Mass extinction was caused by climate change.
The climate change was caused by the asteroid impact

and volcanic activity.
The Holocene Epoch
The sixth major extinction
The next major extinction is occurring presently.
This is the sixth mass extinction.
Human exploitation of the environment is the cause of this mass
extinction.
It is occurring in the Holocene Epoch and the mass extinction is
called the Holocene extinction or sometimes the megafauna
extinction.
Reason why it is called the megafauna extinction: the large
mammals ( woolly mammoth and dodo) became extinct during
this time.
Terminology
Extinction: refers to the death of all the organisms of a species so
that not even a single member of the species exists.
Natural extinctions: usually occur at a constantly lower rate,

almost the same rate at rate at which new species are formed.
Mass extinction: when more than 50% of the earth’s species

vanishes in a geological instant of a few million years.
Jurassic Period: period when dinosaurs flourished.

Something for you to do
1. The process by which living organism die off so that

not a single member of the species exists.
A. Mass extinction
B. Extinction
C. Megafauna extinction
D. None of the above.
2. The disappearance of more than 50% of the Earth’s
species in a geological instant of a few million years.
A. Mass extinction
B. Extinction
3. The name given to the extinction characterized by
the death of large mammals.
A. Mass extinction
B. Extinction
4. The first mass extinction was caused by…
A. Drop in sea levels

B. Formation of glaciers
C. Rising sea levels as the glaciers melted.
D. All of the above.
5. The most famous extinction took place…
A. 65 million years ago

B. 250 million years ago
C. 364 million years ago
D. 439 million years ago
6. The mass extinction that occurred as a result of
unknown causes is occurred more than…

7. The most serious mass extinction took places more
than…

8. Dinosaurs dominated the…
A. Water, land and air

B. Water and air
C. Land and air
D. Water and land.
9. Iridium is…
A. A rare element found in asteroids.

B. Found in the dinosaurs.
C. A type of dinosaur.
D. The sixth mass extinction.
10. The highest rate of mass extinction occurs during
the…
A. sixth mass extinction

B. first mass extinction
C. second mass extinction
D. fifth mass extinction
Solution
1. B
2. A
3. C
4. D
5. A
6. C
7. B
8. D
9. A
10. A

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Life sciences Grade 10

CAPS: structured, clear, practical

KNOWLEDGE AREA: Diversity, change and continuity

Discussion Item Three

4 Discussion Item Four

The earliest known mass extinction occurred about 439

The sea levels dropped because of the formation of

The sea levels rises as the glaciers started to melt.

The second extinction occurred about 364 million years

It is not known what caused this extinction.

The third extinction occurred about 250 million years

It may have been caused by: comet or asteroid impact

The fourth mass extinction occurred about 199 million

It was caused when volcanoes erupted releasing large

This is turn lead to global warming.

The fifth mass extinction occurred about 65 million

There are several possible causes:

The most famous mass extinction occurred 65 million years ago,

During this extinction almost 90% all species became

This included: 84% of marine genera and about

However the following are some of the conditions that

Iridium was found in a thin layer of clay.

The above evidence lead to the formation of three hypothesis.

The most common hypothesis is that an asteroid crashed onto

It is believed that the continental drift led to the

Mass extinction was caused by climate change.

The climate change was caused by the asteroid impact

Natural extinctions: usually occur at a constantly lower rate,

Mass extinction: when more than 50% of the earth’s species

Jurassic Period: period when dinosaurs flourished.

1. The process by which living organism die off so that

A. Drop in sea levels

A. 65 million years ago

A. 65 million years ago

A. 65 million years ago

A. Water, land and air

A. A rare element found in asteroids.

A. sixth mass extinction

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