Dinosaurs were the rulers of Planet Earth, before an asteroid impact wiped them out about 66 million years ago. What caused the dinosaur to be the dominant animal and its variety?
A group of scientists in research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences said that massive volcanic eruptions helped create the era of the dinosaurs.
In the Triassic period which began about 250 million years ago, there was a massive ecological change where there was a mass extinction. Dinosaurs began to appear in this era and were still in the form of ordinary reptiles, until later turning into Triceratops or Tyrannosaurus Rex.
During the Triassic period there was a Late Triassic Carnian Pluvial Episode (CPE), in which the temperature and humidity of the Earth increased. This incident coincided with intense volcanic activity.
"Our research shows that this period can be divided into four distinct events, each event triggered by powerful volcanic activity associated with the release of large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. This led to an increase in global temperature and humidity," said Jason Hilton, professor at the University of Birmingham.
There are also periods when it rains very intensely. At that time, plant species that cannot adapt to extinction, as well as animal species that are in the water and on land.
"These changes freed up ecological space for other groups of organisms, such as dinosaurs, to thrive," Hilton added.
"At that time, dinosaurs were just starting to develop their species and it's likely that without that event, they would never have achieved the ecological dominance we see running for the next 150 million years," said Dr. Emma Dunne, an expert from the University of Birmingham.