An extinction event (also extinction-level event, ELE) occurs when a large number of species die out in a relatively short period of time.

Since life began on Earth, a number of major mass extinctions have greatly exceeded the background extinction rate present at other times.

Though there were undoubtedly mass extinctions in the Archean and Proterozoic, it is only during the Phanerozoic Eon that the biological invention of bones and shells has provided a sufficient fossil record from which to make a systematic study of extinction patterns.

For more information about the topic Extinction event, read the full article at Wikipedia.org, or see the following related articles:

Mesozoic — The Mesozoic Era is one of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic eon. The Mesozoic includes three geologic periods: from oldest to youngest, they ...  > read more

Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event — The Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event was a period of massive extinction of species, about 65.5 million years ago. It corresponds to the end of ...  > read more

Paleozoic — The Paleozoic Era is a major division of the geologic timescale, one of four geologic eras. The Paleozoic includes six geologic periods; from oldest ...  > read more

Permian-Triassic extinction event — The Permian-Triassic (P-T or PT) extinction event, sometimes informally called the Great Dying, was an extinction event that occurred approximately ...  > read more

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