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Quadrazoic (extra mass extinction); A world of arboreal rodents, aquatic creodonts, ungulate like lagomorphs and massive xenarthans
Topic Started: Oct 17 2010, 10:37 AM (1,500 Views)
Forbiddenparadise64
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Ok, here is a basic outline. What if a huge mass extinction, like somewhere between the scale of the K-T and P-Tr extinction, were to be placed about 35-40 million years ago? It is caused by an asteroid slightly (about 10%) bigger than the K-T one, plus volcanic activity. It splits the Cenozoic into the Cenozoic (65-38 million BC) and Terazoic (38 million BC-42 million AD). Ok, the Terazoic is going to be a bizzare world order. The asteroid hit off the AFrican coast in the Tethys and wiped out most of the amazing fauna living there, much mroe than the minor extinction in R-L would 3 million years later. It triggers intense volcanic activity which in turn triggers a heating similar to the Paleocene Eocen thermal maximum, this makes temperatures sore, and shortly afterwards decline again. Ocean stocks die, as do most large terrestrial organisms, unusual things start to happen to the survivors in teh absence of niches. Once the carnage is done, the Earth's fauna are twisted beyond recognition.

Over 80% of species are extinct, and the course of evolution is drastically changed. The dates taht will be covered will be the Oligocene-miocene transition (25 million BC), the late Miocene (10 million BC), the alternative pliestocene (3million BC to 4 million AD) and the Xenocene (31-42 million AD) Who with a good knowledge of prehistory and mass Extinctions wants to contribute to this project?
Prepare for the Future Walking with the future: Allozoic (pts 4-6)http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/topic/3252142/14/#new

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Kamidio
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First, why an ocean? Why not make it crash into the Himalayas? Crashing into the sea almost always has the exact same effect, but what about crashing into a mountian ragne?
SSU:NC - Finding a new home.
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Ook
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more dust,less sun light?

i know u propably dont know it,but in my future project is era called terazoic,its from 5 to at least 60 MYF
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Forbiddenparadise64
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Well, a mountain range seems unusual, but I picked the Tethys because it was also a biodiverstiy hotspot at the time, while (as far as I know) the Yucatan peninsula wasn't. 38 million years ago, the Himalayas were far smaller than today, and Everest would have been like a hill. It suppose the impact crater, about 250km wide, would create a small mountain range surrounding it with the uplifting power, and maybe it could fill with water, forming a lake? I don't think it will change the process of continental drift though.

Ok, I didn't know about the terazoic? How about Tetrazoic or Quadrozoic? Before 38 million BC (as it would be called in R-L), the world is the same as ours, until a large comet is distorted out of orbit by a passing asteroid, and heads on a collision course with Earth. Smaller fragments of the other asteroid hit the other planets, forming new craters on there as well. The main comet, about 12km in diameter (K-T asteroid was 10km) slams into the Pakistan coast, in the EAstern Tethys and collides partially with the Early Himalayas. The explosion is huge, and vaporises all life in a massive radius. Massive layers of dust croud up in the sky, killing most plants, and the large herbivores like Untatheres, brontotheres and early rhinos perish the first, followed by early cetaceans and sirenians in teh sea. This triggers volcanic activity on the other side of the Earth, giving more dust in the atmosphere and a spike in temperaturs like in the paleocene. In fact, all terrestrial animals wieghing over 7kg are wiped out by the great Eocene-Oligocene mass purge. In the seas all marine tetrapods as well as many fish and invertabrates perish as well. The first period to be explored will be the world of 24 million BC, 14 million years after teh purge. I will explore 3 habitats in this time period, and give several species in each one. Most specialised groups, like multituberculates, monotremes and almost all marsupials are wiped out, along with most Laurasiatheres, with the exception of the insectivores, the Afrotheres, primates, culugos, specialised rodent kin, xenungulates in South America, all but 2 species of ratite, crocodilians, chelonians, amphibians and even a few specialised species of insect. Teh only arthropod group to fully die out are Horseshoe crabs. At 24 million AD, the world is reverted to an neo-Eocene hothouse, a very different Oligocene to the one we know, although grasses are becoming increasingly common, except many live in swampy habitats as well and are adapted to moist habitats. With very few surviving artiodactyls, animals like xenarthans, rodents, lagomorphs, even herbivorous tree shrews and squamates are taking over herbivore niches, while birds and creodont like shrews begin to take over teh carnivorous niches, this soon after the extinction.

Anyone ready to suggest species for the rainforest of China? See you next post!
Prepare for the Future Walking with the future: Allozoic (pts 4-6)http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/topic/3252142/14/#new

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Scrublord
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Are mammals still the dominant land vertebrates here? This looks like it'll become a good project, and I hope it stays around.
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The Neozoic Redux
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In the end, the best advice I could give you would be to do your project in a way that feels natural to you, rather than trying to imitate some geek with a laptop in Colorado.
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ATEK Azul
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This is an interesting idea I must admit and it has an uncommon type of scenario which I really like and strive for myself in spec evo.

Also Hi everyone it has been awhile! My new computer won't let me on the site so sorry for not being around.
I am dyslexic, please ignore the typo's!
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The Dodo
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Well, its nice to seen you back even for a short time.

And I agree, this does sound like an interesting project. Although I don't think Horseshoe crabs would die out, they've survived 5 mass extinctions before and I'm sure they will make it through this one.
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Forbiddenparadise64
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Yeah mammals are still dominant, but in different forms. And ok, horseshoe crabs survive. Anyway:

24 million BC: The Congo

It has been millions of years since a mass extinction decimated life on Earth and changed the course of history from R-L to this world. The world's climate has been changed too, it has become much warmer and reverted to an early Eocene like phase, with rainforests being very abundant worldwide. Mammals remain dominant, but most recognisable clades have been wiped out or greatly reduced. Ecosystems have been reduced to the brink, but have now bounced back up again. A team of scientists decide to use a transdimensional transporter that selects a desired scenario and plays it out. They send a member there to explore the alternative world bit by bit.

I walk out of the portal into a vast forest around me. The forest is far from quiet. The trees seem abundant with arboreal mammals and birds that swoop around and feed on the fruit, or insects, or each other. The herbivores appear to be strange prehinsile-tailed rodents, as primates and relatives have been wiped out. Some are small, no bigger than shrews, feeding on little nuts, other larger ones, ranging from squirrel to cat size, roam looking for fruit, and bigger still ones, of gibbon size feed on leaves. They are hunted by mustelid like carnivorans with vicious attitude just like thier R-L relatives. An insect scatters in front of me, resembling a bombfire beetle, but a closer look shows it is a derived cockroach. It is soon chased by a large predatory beetle, about 10cm in length, with feathery back limbs. After failing to catch the fireroach, it puts its legs in the air in the hope of attracting a mate, but is instead eaten by a large insectivorous bird of passerine origin.

Soon a herd of deer like creatures, similar to chevrotains emerge, the few remaining artiodactyls to survive. It has grown back in size again, with larger males weighing about 50-60kg, while females around 30-40kg. The males have red eyebrows and straight pronged horns, while females have straight antelope like horns. They are not scared of me, and in fact seem to welcome me as I have scared off a dog sized civet that was stalking them. They venture near the stream, with care as they know something is lurking nearby. Suddenly a large 1.5m creature dives out and grabs a nearby rodent. It is a strange creature, with an ambulocetid like head, otter like body, beaver like tail and front limbs with large flippers like a diver's flippers. It has water tight, glossy fur, small ears, relatively high nostrils and uniform teeth as well. It seems very unusual, but than a closer look at the structure of its head and jaws reveals it to be a derived creodont! It is a small creature in comparison to its analogue in the rivers, but appears nonetheless fierce.

I venture out into beach, where the river ends. It teems with sea birds and even bats taht feed on fish and shellfish that live on the water or on the beaches. Around them are larger versions of the creatures seen previously. They have less fur than the river creatures, but more prominent whiskers, internal ears and thicker webbings on the forlimbs, firm membranes of skin along the forelimbs, someone like flippers, as well as slightly smaller forelimbs, and a longer tail. These creatures are about 3.5m long and must weigh about 200kg at least. They have vocal pouches to create screeches to attract mates. Nearby A group of large green lizards with gummy mouths rest on rocks and dive in to feed. They are like bigger versions of marine iguanas, but with flippers instead of limbs, and teeth specially designed to filter algae. They appear to be working towards sirenian and desmostylan analogues. They are about 4m long and must weigh more than 400kg, and are by far the largest animals encountered. The smaller, navy blue coloured males have large, red crests on their head, shaped like boomerangs, which they fill with air and create a strange trumpet like noise that attracts females and allows them to communicate with each other. Nearby, where their faeces have fallen, several blue and red crabs, and the odd mammal of shrew origin or bird also feeding on it, being in turn fed upon by large, stork like birds. A sailed snake wonders into the water in search of fish, with its long, hooked head and gaping teeth.

Ok, how was that for a description? Next I will do the plains of Canada 24 million BC. See you next post!
Prepare for the Future Walking with the future: Allozoic (pts 4-6)http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/topic/3252142/14/#new

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Forbiddenparadise64
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If anyone wants to create species for this project, feel free to do so, I might make this an open project as well, especially for later time periods. Anyone want to contribute?
Prepare for the Future Walking with the future: Allozoic (pts 4-6)http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/topic/3252142/14/#new

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Ook
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i should post you some species,i have holidays next week and i a m going to slovakia so i will(propably) have more free time
Edited by Ook, Oct 24 2010, 04:19 PM.
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Jasonguppy
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I can help. How about convergent sirenianlike canadian tapirs?

se URL:http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/customcode/TCEMediaPopup.cfm?Language=E&ArticleID=A0010389&MediaID=7412&TB_iframe=true&height=612&width=885&modal=true
I do art sometimes.

"if you want green eat a salad"

Projects:
Amammalia: A strange place where mammals didn't make it and the land is, once again, dominated by archosaurs.

Oceanus: An endless sea dotted with islands, reefs, and black holes. Literally endless, literal black holes.

❤️❤️~I'm not a boy~❤️❤️
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Ook
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thats not a tapir
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Forbiddenparadise64
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Tapirs went extinct in the mass extinction. And I don't think they were ever found in Canada. Moving on than,

The Canadian grasslands

In a far warmer world, grasses spread much further North than in R-L, and although are much rarer, they are still managing to spread and compete with other plants. Many of the herbivores here are pigs and lagomorphs, which thrive in these conditions, and parentelodons are starting to evolve as well to hunt them. Large deer are also evolving along an unusual line.

I walk into the Canadian grasslands with caution, as I try not to frighten the beasts ahead of me. They are large versions of primitive hares, more specialised and different from the ones I knew. They were quite long legged and almost antelope like in design. A larger species wandered by, like a giant capybara and butted them away. This larger creature was 1.8m long and weighed about 300kg, making it one of the larger grass eaters of the plains. Suddenly it was running, as I saw it was being chased by a fierce relative of the peccary. This creature was somewhat light in build, but deadly with huge jaws. It was the size of a jaguar and just as agile, able to snap its jaws round the herbivores neck and break it. It ignored me as I approached it to take a photo, and it growled at me in an act of aggression. Peccary relatives had taken over the role of apex predator now! A group of much bigger creatures were grazing nearby. They were larger than the lagomorphs and bulkier, with almost tapir like bodies, with a long proboscis and 4 small tusks, as well as a pair of pronged horns. It was a strange species of deer adapted to a larger herbivore niche, about the size of a Bison, and analogous to early elephants. It was the biggest creature here, along with a herd of smaller pigs around, each about the size of a wild boar, but lighter in build and feeding on the grass. A medium sized civet species crawled out and started stealing from the Peccary's kill, bit by bit. Large bats swooped from the sky to act like storks, picking out insects from the grass, with wingspans of up to 2m, they looked like pterosaurs of old ages. An even larger beast, of 2.5m swooped down to scare the suid from the carcass and feed upon it. I walked away, to study my results.

OK, despite being brief, 24 million BC is now done, Next I will do the much more abundant 10 million BC, where the fauna have evolved to a greater degree and extinctions have occured and the ecology has changed dramatically. See you than.
Prepare for the Future Walking with the future: Allozoic (pts 4-6)http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/topic/3252142/14/#new

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Jasonguppy
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nice, FP
I do art sometimes.

"if you want green eat a salad"

Projects:
Amammalia: A strange place where mammals didn't make it and the land is, once again, dominated by archosaurs.

Oceanus: An endless sea dotted with islands, reefs, and black holes. Literally endless, literal black holes.

❤️❤️~I'm not a boy~❤️❤️
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Cephylus
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love it. especially the pterosaurian bats
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