Daily Dino Fact: Na na na na, hey hey hey… Goodbye!
Q: How did the dinosaurs become extinct? – Rent and Pilpulpichu
A: We’ve answered this question before, but it is such a big deal I thought it would be good to have a refresher.
I’m sure you guys are getting used to this response by now, but we don’t really know. There are two competing theories on the extinction that occurred at the K/T bounday (the time between the Cretaceous and Tertiary periods). One group believes it was a gradual extinction and the other follows the idea of a single catastrophic event. Here is what we do know:
-There was global climate change from warm to cooler temperatures going into the Cenozoic. However the dinosaurs went extinct, this is what caused it. How it happened is the subject of debate.
Gradualists
These guys believe that the extinction occurred over a long period of time. We know there was a lot of volcanic activity at the end of the Cretaceous, and the ash from these eruptions could have partially blocked out the sun and produced climate change over time. Another possible answer is earthquakes and the shifting of the earth’s plates.
Catastrophists
These dudes believe a single or series of catastrophic events wiped out the dinosaurs relatively quickly. The biggest theory in this area is that a large object from space collided with the Earth, making so much dust and debris that it blocked out the sun, causing climate change on a larger and quicker scale.
So what really happened? We really don’t know. This is one of the most heavily debated topics in paleontology today and there are a wide variety of theories. For more information you can read this article from the University of California Museum of Paleontology.
How do you think the dinosaurs died?
Tags: Daily Dino Fact, Dinosaurs, extinction, webosaurs
November 3rd, 2009 at 11:22 am
Awsome fact
-Zoo
November 3rd, 2009 at 11:25 am
awsome info!
November 3rd, 2009 at 12:17 pm
LOL!…i think they turned into other animals like one of the dinosaurs have turned into the snake because he looked like a snake when you remove that dinosaur’s arms and legs it will look like a snake.
November 3rd, 2009 at 1:40 pm
i think they died by two things either a metiorite or a hypercan
November 3rd, 2009 at 1:44 pm
wat was the smelliest dino
November 3rd, 2009 at 1:58 pm
Hey guys I would like to be a mod:)
November 3rd, 2009 at 3:52 pm
I have a question. Was there a dinosaur called a supersaur?
November 3rd, 2009 at 4:00 pm
What was the most fierce dino ever?
I think they died by either…
A. A volcano erupted
B. The vegetarians ate all the trees then they died and the meat eaters ate each other
~Screechie
November 3rd, 2009 at 7:19 pm
I think it was a flood,cant fo into much detail because then it will get into religion and yeah…
November 3rd, 2009 at 11:03 pm
poor dinos they we”re my favorite
November 3rd, 2009 at 11:19 pm
Isn’t Tertiary a color catagory? Like, Yello Green, Red Orange, Blue Violet, ect.
November 4th, 2009 at 11:46 am
Weborsaurs, u can not become a mod by saying want to! Plus, all mods have to be over eighteen!
November 4th, 2009 at 12:06 pm
I think they died because of a flood.
November 4th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
Which dino had the longest horn?
-Eachares
November 4th, 2009 at 12:22 pm
I think all meat eaters ate all the plant eaters then the meat eaters ate each other and the other living one died by getting old….
Me not sure…. MY BRAIN HURTS (lol)
November 4th, 2009 at 3:05 pm
I think a t rex blew a monster fart and all the dino gagged to death. lol
November 4th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Maybe because,dinosaurs that are meat eaters always eat people that travel so some people killed them so they all became instinc.
March 16th, 2010 at 12:15 pm
An asteroid came down from space then landed and made volcanos wiped out dinosaurs some did survived and died from some kind of wave .
June 20th, 2010 at 8:47 am
Wasn’t there also a huge vulcanic eruption in India (Deccan) ?