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The Mesozoic Era [3] is the era of Earth's geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods.It is characterized by the dominance of archosaurian reptiles such as the dinosaurs, and of gymnosperms such as cycads, ginkgoaceae and araucarian conifers; a hot greenhouse climate; and the tectonic break-up of Pangaea.
Figure 1:In mammals, the quadrate and articular bones are small and part of the middle ear; the lower jaw consists only of dentary bone.. While living mammal species can be identified by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands in the females, other features are required when classifying fossils, because mammary glands and other soft-tissue features are not visible in fossils.
Pages in category "Mesozoic mammals" This category contains only the following page. This list may not reflect recent changes. P. Pantotheria
The Triassic is the first and shortest period of the Mesozoic Era and the seventh period of the Phanerozoic Eon. Both the start and end of the period are marked by major extinction events. [10] The Triassic Period is subdivided into three epochs: Early Triassic, Middle Triassic and Late Triassic.
Citing reptiles and other animals with a much slower biological aging process than mammals, de Magalhães hypothesizes that during the Mesozoic Era, mammals either lost or deactivated genes ...
Most mammals during the Mesozoic Era, the age of dinosaurs, were shrew-sized bit players in the larger theater of life, doing well to avoid becoming someone else's lunch. Repenomamus shows at ...
Species that depended on photosynthesis declined or became extinct as atmospheric particles blocked solar energy. As is the case today, photosynthesizing organisms, such as phytoplankton and land plants, formed the primary part of the food chain in the late Cretaceous, and all else that depended on them suffered, as well.
"Mammals arose not long after the first dinosaurs, but spent many tens of millions of years in their shadows. Mesozoic mammals were highly successful and diverse, but only at smaller body sizes."