WildFires May Have Sparked Ecosystem Collapse

New research that was released reveals that wildfires may have been a key contributor to the total collapse of many land ecosystems during one of Earth’s worst mass extinction events which occurred over 250 million years ago.

Researchers and Scientists at UCC and the Swedish Museum of Natural History said that the Permian extinction which was over 250 Million Years Ago eliminated almost every species on Earth. All of the ecosystems collapsed. The researchers discovered that there was a very sharp spike in wildfire activity during this time when the devastating extinctions were occurring. The wildfires made regions wet. And these wetlands have many sources of carbon.

When researchers were studying this event, they found high amounts of burnt plants that were dated to the late Permian Period. There were many charcoal plants during that time according to scientists.

Author: Sri Nihal Tammana

Source: University College Cork