My Science Library Why Plants Become Extinct by Julie K Lundgren Science Content Editor Shirley Duke Rourke Educational Media rourkeeducationalmedia com Teacher Notes available at rem4teachers com
The Case of the Disappearing Plants Calling all detectives Plants everywhere have gone missing Extinction threatens many others Habitats containing hundreds of plants found nowhere else on Earth face danger particularly plants in rainforests on islands and along shorelines One in five of Earth’s plant species is at risk of extinction Plant fossils give scientists clues about what Earth’s climate was like when the plants lived 4
The overall increase in Earth’s temperature causes ocean water levels to rise flooding shoreline plants Throughout Earth’s history plant extinctions have happened as a natural part of a changing planet Vast seas containing prehistoric saltwater plant life once covered most of central North America where grasslands and forests now grow As Earth’s land and climate changed over millions of years plants changed too They developed new ways to reproduce take in nutrients and gather sunlight more efficiently 5
