Modern evolutionary synthesis
Catastrophism and mass extinctions. A partial reintegration of catastrophism has occurred, and the importance of mass extinctions in large-scale evolution is now clear. Extinction events disturb relationships between many forms of life and may remove dominant forms and release a flow of adaptive radiation amongst the groups which remain. Causes of extinction include meteorite strikes (K–T junction; End–Ordovician extinction events); flood basalt provinces (Deccan Traps at K/T junction; Siberian Traps at P–T junction); and other less dramatic processes.