MCQs
on mass extinction
1. Which mass
extinction event is often referred to as the "Great Dying"?
a) Ordovician-Silurian
b) Devonian
c) Permian-Triassic
d) Triassic-Jurassic
2. What percentage of
species was lost during the Permian-Triassic extinction?
a) 27%
b) 57%
c) 70-75%
d) 90-96%
3. Which event led to
the emergence of new ecosystems and extinction of numerous lineages?
a) Devonian extinction
b) Triassic-Jurassic extinction
c) Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction
d) Permian-Triassic extinction
4. The
Triassic-Jurassic extinction coincided with the breakup of which
supercontinent?
a) Pangaea
b) Gondwana
c) Laurasia
d) Rodinia
5. What is the primary
cause of the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T) extinction?
a) Volcanic activity
b) Climate change
c) Impact of a large asteroid/comet
d) Ocean acidification
6. Which extinction
event resulted in the demise of non-avian dinosaurs?
a) Devonian
b) Permian-Triassic
c) Triassic-Jurassic
d) Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T)
7. What factor is
responsible for the widespread extinctions among marine invertebrates during
the Ordovician-Silurian extinction?
a) Climate cooling
b) Volcanic activity
c) Sea-level fluctuations
d) Glaciation
8. Which extinction
event allowed for the proliferation of dinosaurs?
a) Devonian
b) Permian-Triassic
c) Triassic-Jurassic
d) Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T)
9. What phenomenon is
associated with the cause of the Permian-Triassic extinction?
a) Gamma ray bursts
b) Methane eruptions
c) Hydrogen sulfide emissions
d) Volcanic activity
10. Which extinction
event is one of the earliest documented in the fossil record?
a) Devonian
b) Permian-Triassic
c) Triassic-Jurassic
d) Ordovician-Silurian
11. What percentage of
families was lost during the Triassic-Jurassic extinction?
a) 23%
b) 48%
c) 57%
d) 70-75%
12. The Devonian
extinction event resulted in significant impacts on which ecosystems?
a) Terrestrial
b) Freshwater
c) Marine
d) Polar
13. The main cause of
the Ordovician-Silurian extinction is attributed to:
a) Impact events
b) Volcanic activity
c) Climatic cooling
d) Oceanic disturbances
14. Mass extinctions
primarily affect:
a) Species diversity
b) Genetic variation
c) Climate stability
d) Geological formations
15. The consequences of
mass extinctions include:
a) Reduction of competition
b) Increase in biodiversity
c) Preservation of ecosystems
d) Accelerated evolution
Answers
1. c) Permian-Triassic
2. d) 90-96%
3. c) Permian-Triassic
extinction
4. a) Pangaea
5. c) Impact of a large
asteroid/comet
6. d)
Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T)
7. c) Sea-level
fluctuations
8. c) Triassic-Jurassic
9. d) Volcanic activity
10. d)
Ordovician-Silurian
11. a) 23%
12. c) Marine
13. c) Climatic cooling
14. a) Species
diversity
15. a) Reduction of
competition
