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The mixing of dinosaurs also would have promoted the exchange of disease. The introduction of new diseases into previously isolated populations can be devastating. One example of disease exchange in the animal kingdom is the infection of antelopes in Africa with the rinderpest virus carried by cattle from India in the late 1800s. Another example is the spread of Blackhead disease from domestic turkeys to heath hens in the eastern United States in the early 1900s. Examples in human history include the introduction of the Black Plague from Asia into Europe during the Middle Ages and the spread of European diseases among the native populations of the Americas and the Pacific during the Age of Exploration. In each case, the local populations were greatly reduced.

Image of some fossils in the dirt.So in this explanation, species after species of dinosaur disappeared due to shrinking habitats, increased competition, and disease, until none were left. Is this what really happened to the dinosaurs? You must look for evidence in the rocks of Earth. The climate did change and the shallow seas did dry out, but did the dinosaurs disappear slowly as suggested by this explanation? Did dinosaurs migrate between continents? Is there any evidence of disease in the fossils? To help you in your search, you might want to look up more information in books or on the internet about disease, epidemics, dinosaur extinctions, habitat fragmentation, and competition between species. Good luck! Fossil image © 1999 -www.arttoday.com

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Dinosaurs and Disease
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Did Dinosaurs Ever Get Sick?
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Dinosaurs and Disease | Disease and More | Did Dinosaurs Ever Get Sick? | Looking at Life Today | Changing Landscapes | Going Going Gone

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