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The Mesozoic Era. Geology 103. Key theme: Pangea breaks up. Process will take 150 my and will extend into the Cenozoic Laurentia/Baltica and Australia/Antarctica are still joined at the end of the Mesozoic. After the Permian extinction….
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The Mesozoic Era Geology 103
Key theme: Pangea breaks up • Process will take 150 my and will extend into the Cenozoic • Laurentia/Baltica and Australia/Antarctica are still joined at the end of the Mesozoic
After the Permian extinction… Life came back in 10 to 20 million years. No tabulate or rugose corals, so reefs were made of different organisms. Many niches on land were repopulated by much different creatures.
Angiosperms appear in the Cretaceous • Angiosperm plants are those that have flowers • Major change in plant life – insects are now the pollinators • These are generally broad-leaf plants
Diversification of Reptiles Marine Reptiles Ichthyosaurs Flying Reptiles Pterosaurs The Dinosaurs Saurischian Ornithischian
Reptiles gain flight in Triassic • Pteranodon – much different wing structure and musculature than modern flying mammals like bats, or even non-mammals like birds.
The Dinosaurs • Approximately 700 species in 300 genera • Mostly warm-blooded (homeostatic) • Rapid metabolism; prey-predator ratio; many blood vessels pores in the bones • Reproduction and Habits • Nesting behavior and social behavior (herds) • Characteristics • Eoraptor earliest thecodont (“socket-teeth”), related to crocodiles • Sauropods long necks and large body quadrupeds; Ornithopods are bipedal herbivores (Camptosaurus); Stegosaurs and Ceratopians are quadruped herbivores • Extinctions: Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous, and, of course, End Cretaceous
The Dinosaurs: Middle Triassic • Differences based on pelvic bone arrangement: Late Triassic Evolution • Saurischian • “Lizard-hipped”, earliest group • Similar to thecodonts • Theropods (carnivorous dinosaurs) Prosauropods (herbivores) • Sauropods (large herbivores) • Ornithischian • “Bird-hipped”, herbivorous dinosaurs evolved from Prosauropods
True birds appear in the Jurassic • Archaeopteryx is the first recognized bird • Most specimens are from the Solnhofen lagenstatten in Germany • True feathers, wishbone • However, this creature was descended from one clade of coelurosaurian theropods; a different clade is believed to be the lineage for birds
True mammals appear in the Triassic • Evolved from a lineage of mammal-like reptiles • Hair, mammary glands homeostasis (= “warm-blooded”, though some of the dinosaurs may have been)
The mammals Mammal-like reptiles therapsids (cynodonts) Early Triassic: small cynodont gave raise to medium-size carnivores and herbivores that are ancestral to mammals Late Triassic: a small cynodont gave rise to the earliest mammal, the morganucodontids Most Triassic and Jurassic mammals were insectivores and very small About twelve inches long; less than 2 kg
Key point: warm climate is the driver of biodiversity/distribution in Mesozoic
Keep an eye on: Tethys Sea Opens from east in Permian, greatest extent in Jurassic, closes from west in Cretaceous
Triassic Period First large rifts in Pangea appear Characterized worldwide by: Nonmarine red beds Arkosic sandstones Lake shales All these are deposited at the rift margins Rifts will become modern oceans
Absaroka transgression is ending Mountains of Taconic orogeny erode into newly-forming rift basins (circled area is New England, arrows show direction of transport) PALISADES SILL, NJ Evidence of rifting of Atlantic Ocean
The “fall line” Interesting aspect of eroding the Taconic: the Cretaceous sediment is eroded back on US east coast rivers until it gets to Taconic crystalline rocks – waterfalls are formed
Red beds • Red beds are sandstones, siltstones and shales that are, well, “red” due to iron oxide which was formed either due to erosion of red soils or exposure of iron-rich sediments to oxygen
Gulf of Mexico opens (restricted basin) • Restricted basin means that marine waters evaporate and leave lots of salt • Tropical marine water also is quite bioproductive – organisms get trapped in salt and eventually turn into petroleum (oil and gas) • Salt domes here protect the oil and therefore are exploited
Sonoma orogeny ends on US west coast Subduction zone switches from westward dipping to eastward dipping – finally, denser oceanic seafloor to the west – all these mountains are gone, except for basin sediments
Mass extinction at the end of the Triassic – the least understood of the “Big Five”
Causes of the end of Triassic mass extinction Not really known, but may have to do with the end of the Absaroka transgression (sea level was falling through the Triassic) and the huge volumes of ocean floor basalt erupted when the Americas rifted from Africa/Europe.
Jurassic Period Beginning of Zuni transgression On US mainland, epeiric Sundance Sea in Canada; due to low sea levels, significant nonmarine sand and silt deposition – Morrison Fm in northern US is a good source of dinosaur bones
Nevada orogeny is responsible for emplacement of many batholiths Obduction occurs when low-density rocks ride up over the other plate at a subduction zone
Jurassic age batholiths • All that remains of the Nevadan orogeny are these batholiths which have been obducted (in some cases) on the North American plate
Early Jurassic of the western US Chinle Formation at Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona
Cretaceous Period “Creta” means chalk Reflects the Zuni transgression; worldwide warm seas that allows coccolithophores to thrive and their shells to deposit and form chalk Rudist (bivalve) reefs are now oil and gas traps
During the Cretaceous… Sea level were higher; epeiric seas covered continents Divergence of planktic organisms led to large coal and oil deposits The Atlantic Ocean continued to open while the Tethys Ocean closed India migrated northward Oxygen levels neared 35% (modern = 21%); polar areas are warm
Why was the Cretaceous warm? The deep ocean was much warmer than today. This implies that more hot rocks were making up the sea floor – greater sea floor spreading! This may have been caused by increased mantle plume activity
Coccoliths A coccolithophore is a calcium carbonate-secreting green algae. Its shell comprises round coccolith plates, whose function is not well understood. First appearing in the Traissic, coccolithophores are an important part of how calcium is cycled to and from organisms.
Rudist bivalves formed reefs – went extinct at K/T boundary Which leaves the niche wide open for the scleractinian corals
Sevier (130-80 My) and Laramide (80-50 My) orogenies Both orogenies are due to the subduction of the Farallon Plate; the difference is timing (Sevier came first) and the angle of subduction All that remains of the Sevier are folds and thrusts in Nevada and Utah; Laramide are some of the Rockies
Cretaceous/Tertiary (K/T) boundary: the second largest extinction in the record
Evidence for impact Iridium is an extremely rare metal on the Earth’s surface – some asteroids (via meteorites) have high concentrations of iridium. This iridium “spike” seen in Montana is seen worldwide.
Further evidence for impact • Spherules • glass beads, felsic, melting of crustal rocks • Soot • carbonaceous particles, wildfires • Shocked Quartz • Contains lamelle (little lines), evidence of a high pressure shock wave • Stishovite • high pressure form of quartz Shocked Quartz
Causes of the K/T extinction event –– Deccan traps (2nd largest flood basalt) Some magma sources are contain high concentrations of iridium.
Ammonites and nautiloids flourish in the oceans – ammonites go extinct at the K/T boundary, nautiloids survive The reason for this is unclear In fact, only 15% of terrestrial genera go extinct, while 70% of marine genera do
