Late Devonian extinction

Marine extinction intensity during Phanerozoic

%

Millions of years ago

(H)

K–Pg

Tr–J

P–Tr

Cap

Late D

O–S

Comparison of the three episodes of extinction in the Late Devonian (Late D) to other mass extinction events in Earth's history. Plotted is the extinction intensity, calculated from marine genera.

The Late Devonian extinction consisted of several extinction events in the Late Devonian Epoch, which collectively represent one of the five largest mass extinction events in the history of life on Earth. The term primarily refers to a major extinction, the Kellwasser event, also known as the Frasnian-Famennian extinction,^[1] which occurred around 372 million years ago, at the boundary between the Frasnian stage and the Famennian stage, the last stage in the Devonian Period.^[2][3][4] Overall, 19% of all families and 50% of all genera became extinct.^[5] A second mass extinction called the Hangenberg event, also known as the end-Devonian extinction,^[6] occurred 359 million years ago, bringing an end to the Famennian and Devonian, as the world transitioned into the Carboniferous Period.^[7]

Although it is well established that there was a massive loss of biodiversity in the Late Devonian, the timespan of this event is uncertain, with estimates ranging from 500,000 to 25 million years, extending from the mid-Givetian to the end-Famennian.^[8] Some consider the extinction to be as many as seven distinct events, spread over about 25 million years, with notable extinctions at the ends of the Givetian, Frasnian, and Famennian stages.^[9]

By the Late Devonian, the land had been colonized by plants and insects. In the oceans, massive reefs were built by corals and stromatoporoids. Euramerica and Gondwana were beginning to converge into what would become Pangaea. The extinction seems to have only affected marine life. Hard-hit groups include brachiopods, trilobites, and reef-building organisms; the latter almost completely disappeared. The causes of these extinctions are unclear. Leading hypotheses include changes in sea level and ocean anoxia, possibly triggered by global cooling or oceanic volcanism. The impact of a comet or another extraterrestrial body has also been suggested,^[10] such as the Siljan Ring event in Sweden. Some statistical analysis suggests that the decrease in diversity was caused more by a decrease in speciation than by an increase in extinctions.^[11][12] This might have been caused by invasions of cosmopolitan species, rather than by any single event.^[12] Placoderms were hit hard by the Kellwasser event and completely died out in the Hangenberg event, but most other jawed vertebrates were less strongly impacted. Agnathans (jawless fish) were in decline long before the end of the Frasnian and were nearly wiped out by the extinctions.^[13]

The extinction event was accompanied by widespread oceanic anoxia; that is, a lack of oxygen, prohibiting decay and allowing the preservation of organic matter.^[14][15] This, combined with the ability of porous reef rocks to hold oil, has led to Devonian rocks being an important source of oil, especially in Canada and the United States.^[16][17][18]