Carboniferous rainforest collapse

High school (ages 12+)
Environment & Earth

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/carboniferous-rainforest-collapse

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the geological period?Late Carboniferous (Pennsylvanian Epoch, Moscovian to early Kasimovian stages)
2. What is the approximate timing?Around 305 million years before present
3. What happened during the Carboniferous rainforest collapse?About 305 million years ago, huge rainforests in the equatorial region shrank and broke into smaller patches. This change made many plants and animals adapt to new conditions.
4. Why did the rainforests disappear?The climate became drier in the equatorial belt, possibly because of changes in wind patterns, tectonic activity, or CO₂ levels. The drier conditions made it hard for water-loving plants to grow.

Carboniferous Rainforest Collapse (CRC): A significant extinction event around 305 million years ago that drastically reduced equatorial rainforests.
Euramerica: An ancient paleocontinent formed by the collision of Laurentia (North America) and Baltica (Northern Europe).
Refugia: Isolated geographic areas that provide sanctuary for species during periods of environmental change or stress.
Dwarfism: A biological phenomenon where organisms exhibit reduced body size, often as an adaptive response to environmental constraints.