TOH edition: Sunday, 13 September 2026 · Animals & Wonder
Life Rebuilt Far Faster Than We Thought: Ancient Alligators Flourished in the Direct Wake of the Asteroid
Reported by New Scientist
Publisher date:
Fossil discoveries reveal that ancestral alligators grew large and diversified across North America just a few hundred thousand years after the asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs. The findings overturn old assumptions that planetary recovery required millions of years, showing complex predators returned swiftly. It offers compelling geological proof of nature's remarkable capacity to mend itself even after catastrophic collapse.
Proving complex ecosystems rebounded swiftly after Earth's worst extinction shows how deeply resilience is woven into living systems.
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