PALEOCLIMATE INDICATORS
type: Concept

MASS EXTINCTIONS
type: Concept
change note: 2012-07-24 15:23:11.0 [mpmorahan] insert Definition (id: null text: mass extinction is a sharp decrease in the diversity and abundance of macroscopic life. They occur when the rate of extinction increases with respect to the rate of speciation. Because the majority of diversity and biomass on Earth is microbial, and thus difficult to measure, recorded extinction events affect the easily observed, biologically complex component of the biosphere rather than the total diversity and abundance of life.[1] language code: en);
change note: 2012-06-26 15:21:45.0 [gee-cee] Insert Concept add broader relation (MASS EXTINCTIONS [703d0c14-1978-4e7f-a51a-233c695823b9,40077] - PALEOCLIMATE INDICATORS [c9a5b3eb-7556-41a8-a2b8-c015db80e5b2,39947]);
in scheme: sciencekeywords
definition: mass extinction is a sharp decrease in the diversity and abundance of macroscopic life. They occur when the rate of extinction increases with respect to the rate of speciation. Because the majority of diversity and biomass on Earth is microbial, and thus difficult to measure, recorded extinction events affect the easily observed, biologically complex component of the biosphere rather than the total diversity and abundance of life.[1]