地球が恐竜の王国だった1億5000万年――なぜ恐竜はここまで繁栄できたのか

For 150 million years, Earth was a kingdom of dinosaurs. Why were dinosaurs able to thrive for so long? The answer cannot be explained simply by "strength." The Permian-era extinction almost completely destroyed Earth's ecosystem, and from this void emerged the ancestors of dinosaurs. Their early archosaur body structure, efficient respiratory system, upright legs, and the changing Earth's environment—dinosaurs were not simply survivors by chance; they were creatures that evolved while adapting to a harsh world. From the giant sauropods of the Jurassic, the hunting of Allosaurus, the defense of Stegosaurus, herds of hadrosaurs in the Cretaceous, dinosaurs that lived in the polar regions, and the world of Hell Creek ruled by Tyrannosaurus Rex—Earth's continents, climate, plants, oceans, and mass extinctions all played a significant role in the evolution and prosperity of dinosaurs. However, even the 150 million-year kingdom of dinosaurs was not eternal. The Chicxulub asteroid impact caused a global catastrophe, wiping out many dinosaurs. However, the dinosaur story didn't completely end. Current birds are living descendants of the dinosaur lineage. This video explains, from the perspectives of evolution, paleontology, mass extinction, and the global environment, why dinosaurs were able to dominate the Earth, why they thrived for 150 million years, how the dinosaur kingdom ended, and how it continues to this day.