Question

How does mass extinction affect the species that survive?

Answer 1

Hint: When three- fourth of the species start disappearing from nature, due to a man- induced or due to a natural change or calamity, in a very short period of time, the catastrophe brought by it is called “mass extinction”. Mass extinction has resulted in wiping out around seventy five to ninety percent of species that existed on earth from present.

Complete answer:
A mass extinction can be caused due to a man- induced cause but most of the time, mass extinction has occurred due to natural calamities. These calamities can be increased by heat trapping on the earth resulting in eruption of volcanoes, the formation of glaciers on the North Pole, the effect of an asteroid striking our planet, etc.
A mass extinction results in the disappearance of many species in a really short period of time, or we could say, in a blink of an eye.
There is much evidence supporting that mass extinction has happened on this planet before but what brings after. After that every mass extinction, life evolved on the planet in a different way. The organisms evolved afterward using the plenty of resources left behind by the “species gone extinct”.
Mass extinction results in decrease of competition between the remaining species and the niches left for the remaining species increase.
This results in fast evolution of the species left behind after mass extinction occurs.
If bigger species groups become extinct during a period of time, this leaves an opportunity for the smaller species group to use the left- resources and channeling the evolution in an unpredictable direction.
When due to mass extinction of groups of species, the habitats are left behind; these habitats are covered by species which were not used to that habitat resulting in their evolution.
This process is called Adaptive radiation and this process is a fast process. This process is the main reason why life evolves so diversely and quickly after a mass extinction occurs.

Note: The extinction of dinosaurs is considered the most recent mass extinction that has happened on the planet. About sixty six million years ago, the Cretaceous- Paleogene Mass extinction took place which wiped out all the species of dinosaurs including $76\% $ other species as well. An asteroid roughly $7.5$ miles across hit the Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula with a speed of $45000$ miles per hour. Huge volumes of dust, debris, and sulfur flung into the atmosphere which brought severe global cooling. Overnight, the habitat supporting the species was destroyed along with the whole dinosaur species.