Increasing Evidence Suggests the Big Five Mass Extinction Did Not Occur

The Permian mass extinction was the most catastrophic event in Earth’s history, also referred to as the Great Dying, believed to have
almost eradicated all life on the planet
about 252 million years ago. Recently, it was discovered that an ancient ecosystem at Southern Taodonggou in present-day China
saw plants and animals flourishing again in just 75,000 years
– a geological blink.

Interestingly, paleontologist
Hendrik Nowak
from the University of Nottingham argues that fossil pollen from other locations indicates “almost or only short-lived confusion” following the end of the Permian. He claims that the impacts were so minor that a mass extinction, at least for plants, did not occur.

This assertion is contentious. Nonetheless, research into two other significant groups (insects and terrestrial animals) aligns with plant observations. This changing perspective suggests that paleontologists are not alone in questioning the magnitude of the Permian mass extinction’s effects.
Spencer Lucas
from the Museum of Natural History of New Mexico speculates that life in marine environments has never faced a mass extinction, asserting, “The chances of a significant extinction are greater on land than in the ocean.”

This fresh perspective can potentially rewrite the history of life on Earth, challenging the notion that the continents have undergone five mass extinctions.