Mesozoic

•  MESOZOIC - Rise of Dinosaurs
•  MESOZOIC - Rise of Dinosaurs
• • 245 - 66 MYA
• • 3 periods
  • Triassic
  • Jurassic
  • Cretaceous
• Warmer climates dominate
• Gymnosperms (non flowering, naked seed) appear and become the dominant plant
• Age of Reptiles
• Herbivores dinosaurs: Brachiosaurus
• Bipeds and Quadrupeds
• Reptiles were dominant due to higher temperature and carbon
• • Reptiles rise, dinosaurs dominate, and shelled eggs help to protect offspring
  • Some reptiles take to the sky (birds)
  • Some reptiles return to the ocean but keep their air lungs
• • The most famous mass extinction in the world occurs at the end of the cretaceous
  • Main theory is asteroid impact changed climate so drastically that majority of animals failed to adapt
• 1. Triassic Period

  • A completely new invertebrate species that developed in the Triassic was the Belemnite.
  • First dinosaurs were evolving
  • Seed Ferns and Conifers
  • Separation of Pangaea to Eurasia and Gondwandland
• 1. Jurassic Period

  • Age of the Dinosaurs
  • The largest dinosaurs during the Jurassic Period were the sauropods
  • Theropods walked on two legs and were carnivorous
• 1. Cretaceous Period

  • The last and longest segment of the Mesozoic Era. 
  • It lasted approximately 79 million years.
  • During the Cretaceous Period, more ancient birds took flight, joining the pterosaurs in the air.
  • Reptiles face competition with mammals
• Dinosaurs became extinct at the end of the Cretaceous period around 65 million years ago.