How do mass extinction events contribute to evolution? After a large mass extinction event, there is typically a rapid period of speciation among the few species that do survive; since so many species die off during these catastrophic events, there is more room for the surviving species to spread out, as well as many niches in the environments that need to be filled. There is less competition for food, resources, shelter, and even mates, allowing the “leftover” species from the mass extinction event to thrive and reproduce rapidly.
end partial quote from:
https://www.thoughtco.com/the-5-major-mass-extinctions-4018102#:~:text=The%20tardigrade%20(water%20bear)%20has,all%205%20major%20mass%20extinction.
Part of the 6th Mass extinction that has been going on now for several hundred years already is pandemics and plagues which are caused in part by extinction events like we are presently in. It is quite possible that even the coronavirus-19 and beyond up the scale to coronavirus 20 to 30 also will be caused either directly or indirectly by the 6th great extinction we are presently in.
The problem we are facing as a human species is that our personal survival is intertwined with all the species we live with even the ones going extinct that are plants and animals and birds and even fish etc.
Also, micro-organisms are also going extinct along with plants and animals and fish and potentially even humans. So, understanding what is happening is important to those humans who might survive all this or they might have no chance at all of surviving what is coming for all organisms here on earth over the next few hundred years.
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