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When Giant Amphibians Reigned

Season 1 Episode 60 | 9m 51s

Temnospondyls were a huge group of amphibians that existed for 210 million years. And calling them ‘diverse’ would be putting it mildly. Yet in the end, two major threats would push them to extinction: the always-changing climate and the amniote egg.

Aired: 10/16/18
Extras
The Permian began with the formation of a supercontinent and ended in the biggest extinction ever.
The Permian began with the formation of a supercontinent and ended in the biggest extinction ever.
How did Homotherium evolve to be so successful? The answer may lie in the rise of the Tibetan plate.
The mystery of what non-flying dinosaurs were doing with their feathered wings has a new hypothesis.
What did ancient people once know about these bizarre megafauna that we’ve since forgotten?
5,700 years ago, woolly mammoths crossed a remote tundra island off Alaska.
Why did vertebrates conquer both the land and the air before the depths of the sea?
Long-extinct dinosaurs may still haunt us—possibly driving us to age faster than any vertebrate.
Only twice in Earth's history have supermountains risen, and both times reshaped life forever.
Was the T-Rex given the wrong name?
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The first saber-teeth and tusks evolve in the Late Permian and our ancestors, the cynodonts, appear.
An extinction in the Middle Permian decimates life, from a fossil reef to our ancient relatives.
The first herbivorous vertebrates evolve on the side of the amniote family tree leading to mammals.
Seed plants and amniotes adapt to dry climates, helping them thrive on Pangea in the Permian Period.
How did Homotherium evolve to be so successful? The answer may lie in the rise of the Tibetan plate.
The mystery of what non-flying dinosaurs were doing with their feathered wings has a new hypothesis.
What did ancient people once know about these bizarre megafauna that we’ve since forgotten?
5,700 years ago, woolly mammoths crossed a remote tundra island off Alaska.
Why did vertebrates conquer both the land and the air before the depths of the sea?
Long-extinct dinosaurs may still haunt us—possibly driving us to age faster than any vertebrate.