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Ch 7 Earth Science

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Mesozoic Era
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Terms in this set (7)
Mesozoic Era
An era of middle life that was a time of many changes on Earth. At the beginning, all continents were joined as a single landmass called Pangaea. Then there was the breakup of Pangea. Included dinosaurs. There were the first birds. Appearance of mammals, small/rodent like. Gymnosperms(seed bearing plants), Angiosperms(flower bearing plants). End of the era- most life forms die out suddenly. Theories, plate tectonics, environment changes, comet/asteroid/meteor blocking out the sun.
Cenozoic Era
Era of recent life that began about 66 million years ago and continues today; includes the first appearance of Homo sapiens approximately 140,000 years ago. Great mountain building, further evolution of mammals.
How long ago did Homo sapiens first appeared in the fossil record? Identify the era in which this occurred.
Homo sapiens first appeared in the Cenozoic Era, about 140 thousand years ago.
How did the breakup of Pangaea affect land organisms during the Mesozoic Era?
The breakup of Pangaea into Laurasia and Gondwanaland resulted in climate change. Only the animals that were able to adapt to the new climate conditions survived the mass extinction. Reptiles, which were already well adapted to the dry conditions of the Mesozoic Era, became the dominant form of land animal.
Describe how the dominant life forms changed during the Mesozoic and Cenozoic Eras.
After the breakup of Pangaea early in the Mesozoic Era, reptiles were the dominant form of land animal. The first small dinosaurs appeared during the Triassic Period. Later, during the Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods larger dinosaur species evolved. Birds and mammals also appeared as the Mesozoic Era progressed. For most of the Mesozoic Era, gymnosperms were the dominant plant form. Angiosperms began to appear during the Cretaceous Period. After the mass extinction that marked the end of the Mesozoic Era, many life forms, including the dinosaurs, disappeared. Mammals became more prevalent, and angiosperms spread throughout the Cenozoic Era.