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Written by Mumtaj Khan
Feb 21, 2026

The 5 Mass Extinctions That Have Swept Our Planet

A world full of life did not stay calm forever. Through long stretches of time, sudden upheavals struck Earth, clearing vast groups of living things in just a blink. Such moments go by the name of mass extinctions.

Five huge die-offs have cleared much of life on our planet, scientists now know. Life took new paths after every one - had these events skipped Earth, people probably would never appear.

Take a look at these five strong parts of our planet’s past.

YouTube Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LOkTojmrU8

The Ordovician–Silurian Extinction Around 444 Million Years Ago

A sudden shift unfolded in the Ordovician age. Life back then mostly filled ocean waters.

What happened?

  • Frost gripped the planet tight, dragging down worldwide cold.
  • Falling fast, sea levels plunged without warning.
  • Fish after fish vanished when the ocean shifted too fast.

Fewer than one in six ocean creatures made it through. The rest vanished without a trace.

After this die-off, sea life changed completely - making space for different creatures to appear later.

The Late Devonian Extinction Around 375 To 360 Million Years Ago

A slow fade marked the second great die-off across countless millennia.

Possible causes include:

  • Climate change
  • Decreased oxygen levels in oceans
  • Volcanic activity

Fish and coral communities collapsed during that time. Most life in the oceans disappeared - about three out of every four kinds.

A shift like that reshaped life under the sea. What followed was different from anything before it.

The Permian Triassic Extinction Around 252 Million Years Ago

Few events match its scale - this one reshaped life when nearly everything vanished. Called “The Great Dying” by many, it hit harder than any other known collapse.

Scientists estimate:

  • Fewer than one in twenty ocean creatures survived. Most vanished without a trace.
  • Frogs, beetles, trees - most vanished when forests shrank. Life on solid ground thinned out fast during that time.

Floods of lava pouring from Earth's core might have triggered chaos. Wild heat baking the planet could follow close behind. Seas turning sour on a vast scale may complete the collapse.

Almost wiped out every living thing - yet those that made it through opened paths for fresh forms of life, among them creatures leading to ancient dinosaur kin.

The Triassic–Jurassic Extinction Around 201 Million Years Ago

A wipeout long ago opened space for dinosaurs to take over Earth.

Believed causes include:

  • Massive volcanic eruptions
  • Rapid climate changes
  • Increased carbon dioxide levels

Fewer than one in five kinds of life made it through, leaving room for dinosaurs to take over on land.

Cretaceous Paleogene Extinction Around 66 Million Years Ago

A sudden shift ended an era when giants ruled the land. That turning point marks what many now recall as a defining moment in Earth's timeline.

Scientists believe a massive asteroid impact triggered:

  • Global fires
  • Dust blocking sunlight
  • Extreme climate disruption

Frogs, trees, and countless insects disappeared - alongside every dinosaur that could not fly. Most life simply faded away during that time.

Few creatures made it through, yet tiny mammals endured. Much later, after ages passed, people appeared.

Signs of a Major Species Die Off?

Some researchers think our planet could be sliding into a new era of widespread species loss. This shift might stem from actions people take that alter natural systems. Instead of ancient causes like asteroids or volcanoes, today it’s things like farming, building cities, cutting down forests, and polluting waterways. These choices quietly reshape life across continents. Not everyone agrees on how fast it’s happening. Still, patterns point toward something serious unfolding beneath the surface

  • Climate change
  • Deforestation
  • Pollution
  • Habitat destruction

This time, it might not be volcanoes or asteroids - people could be pulling the trigger. What once came from the sky now comes from cities, farms, roads. Nature used to shake things up; today hands guide the collapse. Not ice ages, but choices stack up. Fires we light, lands we claim - they echo like ancient catastrophes. A twist: the force behind dying species wears shoes.

Conclusion

Five huge die-offs show our planet never stays still. Though destruction followed each one, chances for fresh beginnings emerged just the same.

Fish in ancient seas, then beasts on land, now people everywhere - each step forward came through change over time. Surviving meant adjusting, again and again. When species vanished, the world shifted quietly beneath new rules. These losses show how thin the thread of existence really is. We’re here because others made way, changed paths, disappeared. What remains depends on choices we barely notice making.

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