Question

What was the reason for mass extinction during the Mesozoic era?
(a) Due to meteorite falling on earth
(b) Due to continental drift
(c) Glaciation
(d) Volcanic eruption

Answer 1

Hint: The reason for mass extinction during the Mesozoic era is believed to be a small piece of debris from an asteroid or comet. Many studies suggest that it was of a diameter of about 10 kilometres or 6 miles.

Complete answer:
Mass extinction during the Mesozoic era occurred due to meteorites falling on earth. Let's begin the explanation by learning about the Mesozoic era. The Mesozoic era was about 250 million years ago. In this era, most large animals were reptiles rather than mammals. There were no dinosaurs and no bird sounds. Flowers were absent and there was no grass too. There was one giant continent called Pangea.
Now let's briefly look into the Mesozoic extinction event.
This era came to an abrupt end 66 million years ago in a dramatic extinction event. An estimated 70% of the animals and plants species perished. There are many theories suggesting the cause behind its extinction. A few of them are accepted as scientifically valid. However, they are placed into two opposite groups, the ‘catastrophists’ and the ‘gradualists.’ According to the catastrophists, the mass extinction happened all of a sudden due to a meteorite impact while the gradualists believe otherwise. Gradualists consider this was prolonged and caused by volcanic activity or climate change with meteorites only acting as the final blow. However, strong evidence points towards the first theory making it more widely accepted than the gradualist theory.
So, the correct answer is, ‘meteorites falling on earth.’

Note:
- During the Mesozoic era, the continents began to move into their present- day configurations. At the outset of the Mesozoic era, all the continents of the earth were joined to form a supercontinent by the named Pangea.
- Among the largest volcanic eruptions in the world’s history, two occurred in the Mesozoic era.