Mesozoic

Also known as Age of Reptiles, Age of Conifers, Mesozoic Era, Mesozoic Erathem

The Mesozoic Era is an era of Earth's geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods. It is characterized by the dominance of archosaurian reptiles such as the dinosaurs, and of gymnosperms such as cycads, ginkgoaceae and araucarian conifers; a hot greenhouse climate; and the tectonic break-up of Pangaea. The Mesozoic is the middle of the three eras since complex life evolved: the Paleozoic, the Mesozoic, and the Cenozoic.

AI overview

The Mesozoic Era is a major division of Earth's history that includes the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous Periods and is famous as the age of dinosaurs and other large reptiles, along with specific plant types, a hot climate, and the breaking apart of the supercontinent Pangaea. It matters because it represents the middle chapter of complex life on Earth, falling between the Paleozoic and Cenozoic Eras, and shows how dramatically our planet's life forms and geography have changed over deep time.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Key facts

Geologic timespan.name: Mesozoic Era
Geologic timespan.color: Mesozoic
Geologic timespan.top_bar: Phanerozoic
Geologic timespan.time_start: 251.902
Geologic timespan.time_start_uncertainty: 0.024
Geologic timespan.time_end: 66.0
Geologic timespan.timeline: Mesozoic
Geologic timespan.name_formality: Formal
Geologic timespan.nicknames: Age of Reptiles, Age of Dinosaurs, Age of Conifers
Geologic timespan.celestial_body: earth
Geologic timespan.usage: Global (ICS)
Geologic timespan.timescales_used: ICS Time Scale
Geologic timespan.chrono_unit: Era
Geologic timespan.strat_unit: Erathem
Geologic timespan.timespan_formality: Formal
Geologic timespan.lower_boundary_def: First appearance of the Conodont Hindeodus parvus.
Geologic timespan.lower_gssp_location: Meishan, Zhejiang, China
Geologic timespan.lower_gssp_accept_date: 2001

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Show 4 more facts

Commons category: Mesozoic
start time: 251902000-
end time: 66000000-0
sRGB color hex triplet: 67C5CA

Sources (4)

via Wikidata · CC0

~19 min read

Article

14 sections

Contents

Naming
Geologic periods
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
Paleogeography and tectonics
Climate
Life
Flora
Fauna
Microbiota
See also
References
External links

The Mesozoic is commonly known as the Age of the Dinosaurs because the terrestrial animals that dominated both hemispheres for the majority of it were Dinosaurs. This era began in the wake of the Permian–Triassic extinction event, the largest mass extinction in Earth's history, and ended with the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, another mass extinction whose victims included the non-avian dinosaurs, pterosaurs, mosasaurs, and plesiosaurs. The Mesozoic was a time of significant tectonic, climatic, and evolutionary activity. The supercontinent Pangaea began to break apart into separate landmasses. The climate of the Mesozoic was varied, alternating between warming and cooling periods. Overall, however, the Earth was hotter than it is today.