The Last Days Of The Dinosaurs

In The Last Days of the Dinosaurs, Riley Black examines the events following the asteroid impact that ended the age of the non-avian dinosaurs. The book explores the changes that took place over days, years, centuries, and even a million years after the event.

Focusing on one location and considering possible developments around the globe, Black outlines how life responded to widespread disruption. While many species were lost, the survival of some life forms shaped the ecosystems that would later develop into the world we know today.

During the late Cretaceous period, about 66 million years ago, Hell Creek in what is now Montana was home to a range of dinosaur species. On a typical afternoon, a Triceratops might have been seen moving along the forest's edge. Within hours, however, the environment would undergo rapid and destructive change. Fires would spread, and species like Tyrannosaurus rex, along with all other non-avian dinosaurs, would disappear. The animals living at that time could not anticipate the transformation about to occur.

Scientists determined decades ago that the cause of this mass extinction was a large asteroid, approximately seven miles wide, striking the Earth and creating a crater more than 50 miles across. The resulting environmental upheaval led to the extinction of over half of all known species. Although devastating, this event also created new ecological opportunities that had not been available for millions of years.

"This is pop science that reads like a fantasy novel, but backed up by hard facts and the latest fossil discoveries. Black is pioneering a new genre: narrative prehistorical nonfiction."
—Steve Brusatte, New York Times bestselling author of The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs

Format: paperback, 287 pages

ISBN: 9781803996530

Size: 215 x 139 x 20mm

Weight: 400g