Most species that ever lived on Earth are now extinct, with the planet having experienced at least five mass extinction events. Live Science brings you expert coverage of extinction as researchers uncover fossils and gain new insights into ancient animals — and track the sixth mass extinction event that appears to have begun.
So whether you're after facts about dodos and dinosaurs, curious about extinct animals that could be brought back to life, or want to know what living animals could be gone by 2050, our writers and editors have you covered with the news, features and articles about extinct species.
Discover more about extinct species
—Cretaceous period: Animals, plants and extinction event
—Dinosaurs: Facts about the reptiles that roamed Earth more than 66 million years ago
—What's the first species humans drove to extinction?
—Woolly mammoths: Facts about these extinct, shaggy beasts that once roamed the Arctic
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Dinosaurs: Facts about the reptiles that roamed Earth more than 66 million years ago
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Rare mammoth tusk found on West Texas ranch
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340 million-year-old 'nail tooth' shark found deep inside Mammoth Cave in Kentucky
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166 million-year-old fossil found on Isle of Skye belongs to pony-size dinosaur from Jurassic
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Megalodon may have grown up to 80 feet long — far larger than previous estimates
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PollShould we bring back woolly mammoths?
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125 million-year-old fossil of giant venomous scorpion that lived alongside dinosaurs discovered in China
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Dinosaurs: Facts about the reptiles that roamed Earth more than 66 million years ago
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166 million-year-old fossil found on Isle of Skye belongs to pony-size dinosaur from Jurassic
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Australia's 'upside down' dinosaur age had two giant predators, 120 million-year-old fossils reveal
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What if a giant asteroid had not wiped out the dinosaurs?
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Secrets of 1st dinosaurs lie in the Sahara and Amazon rainforest, study suggests
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'Sexy' pterosaur tail should have been nightmare for flying. How did it work?
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Giant horned dinosaur's fossils were destroyed in WWII — but photos reveal it was an unknown species
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Enormous skull of 200-million-year-old giant dinosaur discovered in China
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Oldest-known dinosaur in North America is a 'chicken-size' raptor — and changes what we know about how dinos conquered Earth
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Rare mammoth tusk found on West Texas ranch
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QuizMammoth quiz: Test your knowledge of the ice age beasts
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Pollen allergies drove woolly mammoths to extinction, study claims
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Ancient chromosomes from woolly mammoth discovered in 52,000-year-old freeze-dried skin
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Mystery 'random event' killed off Earth's last woolly mammoths in Siberia, study claims
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Woolly mammoth de-extinction inches closer after elephant stem cell breakthrough
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'That's a huge amount of movement for a single mammoth': Woolly female's steps retraced based on chemistry of 14,000-year-old tusk
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Huge, complete mammoth tusk accidentally discovered by North Dakota coal miners
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Woolly mammoths were seasonal sex fiends just like elephants, study finds
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