1. By: Phil Stark and Michael Sartor Earth Science, p.6 Fr. O’Neill
The Mesozoic Era
By: Phil Stark and Michael Sartor
Earth Science, p.6
Fr. O’Neill

2. In The Beginning
The start of the Mesozoic Era was a desolate time in Earth’s history.
Over 90% of Earth’s life extinct.
Barren wasteland from comet, climate change, or volcanic eruptions.
Called: Great Dying.
Means “Middle Animals”
Life that survived re-populated the planet, diversified ecosystems, and gave birth to all new life

3. What It Was Like Earth’s landmasses collided forming Pangea.
Pangea was the first known super-continent.
C-shaped.
Came undone as soon as it formed.
The split caused erratic climate everywhere.
Seasonal monsoons, global warming, and rift valley formation
Formed red sediment that best preserved fossils

4. Life Forms
Oceans were teaming with all new life: coil-shelled ammonites, mollusks, sea urchins, coral.
Giant reptiles such as the: Ichthyosaurs, the long-necked and paddle-finned plesiosaurs, and squids.
Phytoplankton first appeared.
Frogs, salamanders, crocodiles, and turtles.
Pterosaurs ruled the sky.
On the ground were: moss, liverwort, ginkgoes, palm-like cycads.
Also on land were: spiders, scorpions, millipedes, and grasshoppers.
First evolutions of dinosaurs.

5. Bigger Life
Eozostrodon
Coelophysis
Plateosaurus

6. The End To A Beginning Ended the same way it started.
Another mass extinction
Dinosaurs survived into the Jurassic though.