(First of all, I am very sorry for the delay. To make up for this, though this is a promise I can't keep, I am going to try to make a blog on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. There is no second of all.)
Many animals were spurring all over the world, but the ones that stood out were the dinosaurs.
But, like mammals, dinosaurs started out small.
The dinosaurs of this time were not the dinosaurs you and me imagine. Most were actually rather small in comparison to later species. In fact, most other animals, such as the tiger-sized Postosuchus, the largest predator of the time, might have outclassed most dinosaurs. The largest a dinosaurian predator got at the time was the similarly sized Herrerasaurus, which was among the earliest of the dinosaurs. Since it was similar in size to Postosuchus, it was one of the fiercest predators of the time, and dwarfed most mammals.
(Herrerasaurus)
(Postosuchus)
Many of the first dinosaurs and dinosaurs throughout the Triassic also consisted of small theropods that roamed the landscape and were outclassed by other creatures, and though there were other medium sized and well-known dinosaurs like Plateosaurus and Coelophysis, they were often outclassed by large reptiles. The first pterosaurs were beginning to appear too, and were the primary prey of many dinosaurs of the time.
During the late Triassic, there was one very strange type of pterosaur known as Sharovipteryx. You're probably thinking why it's so strange. This pterosaur, instead of evolving wings on it's arms, had evolved wings on it's legs. The purpose of this is unknown, though the most plausible answer is for a better gliding strategy that allowed it to glide similar to an aircraft.
(Sharovipteryx)
Meanwhile, gymnosperm forests were beginning to dominate the land and swamps were abundant in the once harsh, desert landscape. Large crocodylomorphs, archosaurs, crurotarsans and many other types of creatures were becoming the dominant creatures, roamed all the land. The icthyosaurs and nothosaurs were becoming quite successful in the oceans as well. Even some amphibians were making a comeback. They teemed within the swamp waters as they do today, and were starting to look much more like frogs. Even the earliest crocodiles were coming into place. There were many strange creatures as well, such as the Desmatosuchus, which had a head similar to a pig and an armored body.
(Desmatosuchus)
The dominant predators of the time were creatures that seemed similar to Postosuchus, and they ate just about anything that had meat, and their primary targets were large creatures that were similar to the bulky herbivores of the Permian, and they even occasionally hunted dinosaurs. Postosuchus looked like a more crocodilian version of a therapsid, with a long tail and a massive, powerful skull that beared dagger-like teeth.
The mammals, on the other hand, didn't seem to be doing any better. Most of them still resided in small holes, where they spent most of their time, while their ancestors, the therapsids, still roamed around outside. Powerful creatures such as Cynognathus, which looked very much like furry therapsids, were distributed world wide. One of the most plentiful type of plant-eaters of the time was a therapsid called Placerias, which had two short tusks on it's face. It seemed that the age of reptiles was upon the earth.
Many types of creatures were evolving, and it seemed that every animal, including dinosaurs, grew at what seemed to be the same rate, though the dinosaurs still seemed small and insignificant, as most of them were pretty small in comparison with other, very successful creatures.
And it could have stayed this way if it had not been for another extinction event. This event was the sole reason dinosaurs would dominate the earth.
This was known as the Triassic-Jurassic extinction event, and it wiped out almost every creature living on the earth at the time on land and in the sea, even most of the types of creatures you and I see today, which eventually made a comeback. But that's a story for another day.
This included all large crurotarsans, many remaining therapsids, and many large amphibians. A whole class of sea creatures and 34% of marine life became extinct.
All of the creatures that seemed to be doing so well in the Triassic were now gone. This extinction event happened 10,000 years before the great continent of Pangea split, and there are many explanations for it, two of them being climate change and massive volcanic explosions.
At least half of the creatures on Earth were wiped out during this event. The only ones that survived were the crocodiles and the Dinosaurs.
(Herrerasaurus)
(Postosuchus)
Many of the first dinosaurs and dinosaurs throughout the Triassic also consisted of small theropods that roamed the landscape and were outclassed by other creatures, and though there were other medium sized and well-known dinosaurs like Plateosaurus and Coelophysis, they were often outclassed by large reptiles. The first pterosaurs were beginning to appear too, and were the primary prey of many dinosaurs of the time.
During the late Triassic, there was one very strange type of pterosaur known as Sharovipteryx. You're probably thinking why it's so strange. This pterosaur, instead of evolving wings on it's arms, had evolved wings on it's legs. The purpose of this is unknown, though the most plausible answer is for a better gliding strategy that allowed it to glide similar to an aircraft.
(Sharovipteryx)
Meanwhile, gymnosperm forests were beginning to dominate the land and swamps were abundant in the once harsh, desert landscape. Large crocodylomorphs, archosaurs, crurotarsans and many other types of creatures were becoming the dominant creatures, roamed all the land. The icthyosaurs and nothosaurs were becoming quite successful in the oceans as well. Even some amphibians were making a comeback. They teemed within the swamp waters as they do today, and were starting to look much more like frogs. Even the earliest crocodiles were coming into place. There were many strange creatures as well, such as the Desmatosuchus, which had a head similar to a pig and an armored body.
(Desmatosuchus)
The dominant predators of the time were creatures that seemed similar to Postosuchus, and they ate just about anything that had meat, and their primary targets were large creatures that were similar to the bulky herbivores of the Permian, and they even occasionally hunted dinosaurs. Postosuchus looked like a more crocodilian version of a therapsid, with a long tail and a massive, powerful skull that beared dagger-like teeth.
The mammals, on the other hand, didn't seem to be doing any better. Most of them still resided in small holes, where they spent most of their time, while their ancestors, the therapsids, still roamed around outside. Powerful creatures such as Cynognathus, which looked very much like furry therapsids, were distributed world wide. One of the most plentiful type of plant-eaters of the time was a therapsid called Placerias, which had two short tusks on it's face. It seemed that the age of reptiles was upon the earth.
Many types of creatures were evolving, and it seemed that every animal, including dinosaurs, grew at what seemed to be the same rate, though the dinosaurs still seemed small and insignificant, as most of them were pretty small in comparison with other, very successful creatures.
And it could have stayed this way if it had not been for another extinction event. This event was the sole reason dinosaurs would dominate the earth.
This was known as the Triassic-Jurassic extinction event, and it wiped out almost every creature living on the earth at the time on land and in the sea, even most of the types of creatures you and I see today, which eventually made a comeback. But that's a story for another day.
This included all large crurotarsans, many remaining therapsids, and many large amphibians. A whole class of sea creatures and 34% of marine life became extinct.
All of the creatures that seemed to be doing so well in the Triassic were now gone. This extinction event happened 10,000 years before the great continent of Pangea split, and there are many explanations for it, two of them being climate change and massive volcanic explosions.
At least half of the creatures on Earth were wiped out during this event. The only ones that survived were the crocodiles and the Dinosaurs.
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