Rise of Predators Transformed Ocean Life on Scale of Mass Extinction (IMAGE)

Florida Museum of Natural History

Rise of Predators Transformed Ocean Life on Scale of Mass Extinction

Caption

Beginning about 150 million years ago, marine predators such as fish, snails and crustaceans quickly diversified, dominating the sea. Their prey adapted by hiding, becoming more mobile or amping up their external defenses. This phenomenon, known as the Mesozoic Marine Revolution, produced the ocean life we see today and was likely as powerful as sudden mass extinctions in redefining what lived where.

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Jeff Gage/Florida Museum of Natural History

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