Elizabeth L. A. Deschner Monique P. V. Viens The Triassic Period

Time Period The Triassic period is the first period in the Mesozoic Era followed by the Permian and then the Jurassic period It is a time that occurred from about 251 to 199 million years ago Both the start and the end of the Triassic period are marked by major extinction events The first flying vertebrates made their appearance in this period along with corals from the hexacorallia

Landforms & Continental Position During Triassic period, Earth’s landmass was concentrated into a supercontinent called Pangea Remaining shores were surrounded by a world-ocean known as Panthalassa All the deep-ocean sediments laid down during the Triassic have disappeared through subduction of oceanic plates

Climate + Atmosphere Generally hot, dry climate Forms typical red bed sandstones and evaporites No evidence of glaciations near north or south poles Highly seasonal: very hot summers and very cold winters

Plants ON LAND PLANTS (dominant) Lycophytes, cycads,ginkgophyta, and glossopterids Spermatophytes (seed plants) In northern hemisphere, conifers flourished In southern hemisphere, Glossopteris (seed fern) MARINE PLANTS (dominant) Corals Reefs

Animals MARINE REPTILES Sauropterygia Nauthosaurs Placodonts Thalattosauria CARNIVORES Prestosuchidae Ornithosuchidae Poposauridae Raiusuchidae HERBIVORES Aardonyx Dryosaurus Gastonia Jobaria Minmi

Animal & Plant Extinctions The largest extinction occurred in this time period -About 95% of all species and about 60% of the genera died out, including many marine animals (like the trilobite) Possible causes of Permian extinction: -global cooling, volcanic eruptions, or a decrease in the continental shelf area during the formation of Pangea

Major Distinctive Events There were 2 flood basalt volcanoes The flood basalt eruptions which produced the Siberian Traps constituted one of the largest known volcanic events on Earth The Emeishan and Siberian Traps eruptions may have caused dust clouds which would have blocked out sunlight and disrupted photosynthesis both on land and in the upper layers of the seas, causing food chains to collapse

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