Jakarta –
The latest analysis of living or extinct species due to asteroids that kill dinosaurs has revealed an unexpected pattern. This pattern is considered contrary to the theory that applies related to the survival of post -mass extinction.
This was revealed through a joint study conducted by The University of Chicago United States, the Smithsonian Institution, and the London National History Museum.
This study made a fossil and remissal catalog, as well as composing a picture of the marine ecosystem before and after mass extinction 66 million years ago. In the early stages, scientists found that three quarters of all species were extinct.
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But, it turns out that the ecological or reciprocity between living things and the environment is not lost. This result, according to scientists is a statistically impossible.
“This is a very interesting and slightly troubling finding. How the ecosystem recovered from mass extinction is still a big question for this field, considering that we are heading towards that direction,” said the Professor of Geophysics Sciences Distinguished Service Uchicago and study writer, David Jablonski was quoted from the official Uchicago page.
Something impossible
In the history of the earth, there are already five mass extinctions or terrible events where the majority of species are extinct due to a global change. Scientists predict, the earth is approaching the sixth mass extinction.
Therefore, they are very interested in understanding how the ecosystem can recover from this big event. Of the five mass extinctions, Jablonski and the team chose to examine the most recent mass extinction.
The event, known as the end of the limestone, resulted in the extinction of more than three -quarters of the species. Including species that die at this time are T-Rex and most dinosaurs.
The study begins with a focus on shellfish, oysters, and other marine mollusks. Their harsh and abundant shells are very easily focused.
Thanks to that, today’s researchers can study the past. The Jablonski team is trying as much as possible to document the picture of the ecosystem before and after extinction.
Carefully, the scientists built a picture of the global ecological landscape right before extinction. Afterwards, they made a comparison with the species found after the event occurred, the results made scientists surprised.
The result is that despite a large number of extinct species, ecology in the sea where shells live are maintained and none are missing. Statistically, scientists believe this is impossible.
“If 75% of all species are extinct, you will suspect that at least a few ways of life will be fully extinct and only one or two species are left. But, that’s not what we see,” said Katie Collins from the London natural history museum.
This finding was not in accordance with the discovery of previous studies on how biodiversity recovered from extinction. A few decades ago, scientists thought that mass extinction was just an effort to accelerate the inevitability.
That is, dinosaurs will basically lose to mammals and remain extinct. However, at that time there was an asteroid that hit the earth and happened to speed up extinction.
In addition there is another opinion about mass extinction, where mass extinction is a biological event that determines who is able to survive will experience evolution to fill a different niche.
However, once again the results of research conducted by Jablonski and his team did not fulfill the two opinions. Jablonski described his findings as a warning.
“We do not understand how the loss of functional groups related to the loss of biodiversity,” he said.
The way the species recovered differently
Another finding that Jablonski and the team considered were that they saw that the way the species recovered to be contrary to expectations. Species that survived the mass extinction, are not necessarily the top.
They have a way of life and ways to recover different or random. Jablonski explained that many scientists assume that when mass extinction occurred, survivors who survived would take advantage of opportunities and diversify (diving) quickly.
He did not close his eyes regarding this fact. Jablonski rate, it can happen to mammals but not in marine ecosystems.
Thus, the study he is expected to be able to provide important information for modern ocean conservation efforts. Moreover, the sea is now threatened with acidification, pollution, and excessive fishing.
“This is something we really want to understand if we want to discuss modern extinction and recovery in the ocean, as well as how to manage it,” explained Jablonski.
“Billions of people depend on the sea to get food and we can see that nature reserves and management policies need to consider the wider biota ecological structure, not just individual species,” he said.
This study was published in the journal Science Advances on May 21, 2025 with the title “The end-Cretaceous mass extinction restructured functional diversity but failed to configure the modern marine biota“.
(it/pal)
