What Was the World Like?
The mesozoic era
- During this era, it was generally warm and there was less temperature difference throughout the Earth.
- The most common plants during this era were cycads, bennettitaleans, conifers, and gingkophytes.1
- The Mesozoic era was mainly dominated by dinosaurs, but also included reptiles and flying reptiles, amphibians, sharks and bony fish, as well as early mammals.
Did You Know?
The Mesozoic Era lasted approximately 186 million years.
- Dinosaurs lived on every continent including Antarctica
- Earth rotated slightly faster during the Mesozoic Era, resulting in days being about 30 minutes shorter.
- High oxygen levels during this time allowed animals to grow insanely large!
- Dinosaurs varied in size, from smaller than a chicken to the size of buildings.
The Mesozoic Era contained 3 of the 5 major extinction events of Earth's history.
End-Cretaceous Extinction
End-Triassic Extinction
Early Jurassic Extinction
252 Million Years Ago
66 Million Years Ago
201 Million Years ago
183 Million Years ago
66 Million Years ago
Extinction!!!!!! - The 3 major events of the mesozoic era
End-Triassic Extinction2
Tectonic activity about 200 million years ago resulted in volcanism, having devastating effects.
- Direct death of life through lava contact, ash and molten-rock bombs, etc.
- Greenhouse gas ejection, leading to heating of earth.
- Increase in tropical-sea temperatures.
- Acid rain due to volcanic gases.
End-Cretaceous Extinction
66 Million years ago, a massive asteroid impacted the Yucatan Peninsula in present day Mexico.
- Massive debris explosions, fires, and earthquakes leading to direct loss of life.
- Dust and debris blocking sunlight for months to years led to global temperature cooling, destroying food chains.
- Additional long-lasting volcanic eruptions.
- Acid rain due to volcanic gases.
- Roughly 75% of ALL species were wiped out.
Early Jurassic Extinction
About 183 million years ago, similarly to the End-Triassic Extinction, volcanism led to rapid climate and ocean changes.
- Greenhouse gas ejection (CO2), leading to heating of earth.
- Increase in tropical-sea temperatures.
- Decrease in ocean oxygen levels, leading to widespread death of marine organisms.
References
- Gee, C.T., & Kranz, D. (2010). Plants in Mesozoic Time: Morphological Innovations, Phylogeny, Ecosystems. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. https://muse.jhu.edu/book/1554.
- Benton, Michael J. The Triassic, England: Elsevier Ltd, www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982216313239.
Write a great text by clicking on Text in the left sidebar. Note: the fonts, size, and color should fit the theme you are addressing.
Disciplines such as Visual Thinking facilitate note-taking that is visually rich thanks to the use of images, graphs, infographics, and simple drawings. Go for it!
Visual content is a cross-cutting, universal language, like music. We are able to understand images from millions of years ago, even from other cultures.
The mesozoic era
Austin Lin
Created on February 21, 2026
Start designing with a free template
Discover more than 1500 professional designs like these:
View
Akihabara Connectors Infographic
View
Essential Infographic
View
Practical Infographic
View
Akihabara Infographic
View
Vision Board
View
The Power of Roadmap
View
Artificial Intelligence in Corporate Environments
Explore all templates
Transcript
What Was the World Like?
The mesozoic era
Did You Know?
The Mesozoic Era lasted approximately 186 million years.
The Mesozoic Era contained 3 of the 5 major extinction events of Earth's history.
End-Cretaceous Extinction
End-Triassic Extinction
Early Jurassic Extinction
252 Million Years Ago
66 Million Years Ago
201 Million Years ago
183 Million Years ago
66 Million Years ago
Extinction!!!!!! - The 3 major events of the mesozoic era
End-Triassic Extinction2
Tectonic activity about 200 million years ago resulted in volcanism, having devastating effects.
End-Cretaceous Extinction
66 Million years ago, a massive asteroid impacted the Yucatan Peninsula in present day Mexico.
Early Jurassic Extinction
About 183 million years ago, similarly to the End-Triassic Extinction, volcanism led to rapid climate and ocean changes.
References
Write a great text by clicking on Text in the left sidebar. Note: the fonts, size, and color should fit the theme you are addressing.
Disciplines such as Visual Thinking facilitate note-taking that is visually rich thanks to the use of images, graphs, infographics, and simple drawings. Go for it!
Visual content is a cross-cutting, universal language, like music. We are able to understand images from millions of years ago, even from other cultures.