Scientists Uncover Evidence of What May Be Earth's First Mass Animal Extinction

Scientists Uncover Evidence of What May Be Earth's First Mass Animal Extinction.
Since the Cambrian explosion 538.8 million years ago – a time when many of the animal phyla we're familiar with today were established – five major mass extinction events have whittled down the biodiversity of all creatures great and small.
Researchers from the US have uncovered evidence of one occurring earlier, around 550 million years ago during a period known as the Ediacaran.
Though the oceans teemed with a few familiar animals like sponges and jellyfish, most life during this early period of biological history would seem alien to us now.
Many of the animals were soft-bodied.
Some looked more like plant fronds stuck in place.
Others had some form of shell.
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Virginia Tech paleobiologist Scott Evans and colleagues compiled data on rare fossils of the squishier kinds of animals from around the world dated to the Ediacaran.