Extinction

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Extinction was the end of a species caused by either the death of the entire population or over a long period of time in which the species was slowly reduced in number until the last members eventually died.

Mass extinctions

Major catastrophes could cause hundreds to millions of species to die out all at once. In cases of planetary destruction, all the species native to the planet could be driven to extinction (unless any native species had access to space travel).

• During the Last Great Time War, Gallifrey was destroyed, leading to the near extinction of the Time Lords and the destruction of all life on the planet. Before this, no animal native to the planet had gone extinct. (PROSE: The Last Dodo) The Time War led to the near destruction of the Daleks, as well as the destruction of many planets, star systems and even galaxies. (COMIC: Agent Provocateur) Specific planets included Eve's planet (leaving Eve the only survivor), (TV: The Mad Woman in the Attic) Polymos and the Nestene protein planets. (TV: Rose)
• By the end of the Thousand Year War between the Kaleds and the Thals, almost all animal life on Skaro was extinct. (AUDIO: Corruption)
• In 1981, the arrival of the Tremas Master on Logopolis fatally disrupted life there, and he killed Logopolitans at random with his Tissue Compression Eliminator. Eventually, because their Block Transfer Computations no longer worked, the planet itself began to crumble and lose coherence, as did the inhabitants. The entropy field caused by the destruction of Logopolis also destroyed a portion of the universe, such as the planet of Traken. (TV: Logopolis)
• 500 million BC, the Cirranin home world was destroyed, leaving only Hr'oln alive. (PROSE: The Last Dodo)
• During the Permian period, 96% of life on Earth was hunted to extinction by the Permians. (AUDIO: The Land of the Dead)
• At the end of the Cretaceous period, a time travelling spaceship filled with anti-matter hit Earth, causing the destruction of around 85% of species, including the dinosaurs. (TV: Earthshock)
• At some point, the Maston's homeworld was destroyed. (AUDIO: Slipback)
• The Caxtarid wiped out four indigenous sentient species on Kapteyn 5 after their conquest of the planet. (PROSE: The Room With No Doors)
• During the war between the All of Us and the People fifteen planets, three planetary rings and fifteen asteroid habitats were destroyed (PROSE: The Also People) and twenty-six billion individuals died. (PROSE: Walking to Babylon)
• At the climax of the century-long war between the Thraals and the Olabrian, the Olabrians destroyed the Thraal's homeworld, wiping out all life on the planet. (PROSE: Ship of Fools)
• The Dax were driven to near-extinction by the Daleks when they destroyed their homeworld of Daxus. However some managed to escape to Earth. (DYD: The Corinthian Project)
• The Veil became near-extinct when their planet's star was extinguished. The last member of the race, Androvax, went on a vengeful vendetta, destroying twelve planets before finally being arrested by the Judoon when he attempted to destroy Earth. (TV: Prisoner of the Judoon)
• Towards the end of the Universe, most species had died out. It is believed that humans, Malmooth, Futurekind (TV: Utopia/Last of the Time Lords) and possibly the Sycorax (PROSE: The Sycorax) had at least survived to 100,000,000,000,000. The Malmooth offically became extinct when Yana killed Chantho, the last of the Malmooth, and the Futurekind followed when Malcassairo went nova. (TV: Utopia) The humans reached a cold and inhospitable planet that they thought was Utopia in which the fires at the world's end made them mad and they transformed themselves into the Toclafane and met their end when Utopia went nova unless if they escaped it simply by flying away. (TV: Utopia/Last of the Time Lords)
• The alien Stingrays travelled to San Helios and consumed all life on the planet. (TV: Planet of the Dead)
• Koral became the last of her kind when her planet, Red Sky Lost, was destroyed by the Daleks. (PROSE: Prisoner of the Daleks)
• All life on the planet Ceres was destroyed when a meteor collided with the planet. (TV: Sirens of Ceres)
• Survivors of attacks supported by the Etydions banded together to vaporise their homeworld, cleansing it of all life. One Etydion survived, arrived on Earth and tried to convert the human race to his kind, but when he realised what he was doing he reversed the process and died. (TV: The Custodians)

Individual extinctions

Species would also go extinct on an individual basis, due to a variety of causes.

• The Khorlthochloi went extinct in the distant past. (PROSE: Synthespians™)
• The Rachnoss were made functionally extinct when the doctor killed off the Empress' children causing the mother to go mad and commit suicide.
• Perganon and Ascinta were two extinct civilisations referred to by Brother Lassar. (TV: School Reunion)
• Baaraddelskelliumfatrexius Beasts were hunted to extinction by the Raxacoricofallapatorians. (TV: Revenge of the Slitheen)
• The Arkellis flower, native to Skaro, became extinct. (The Dalek Book)
• The Dals died out before at some point before Davros was born. (AUDIO: Purity)
• By the 29th century the star whales were driven to near-extinction. Only one survived and offered help to Starship UK, but it was captured and tortured by its leaders. Three hundred years later its intent was realised and it was released by Amy Pond. It continued to serve Starship UK. (TV: The Beast Below)
• The Benelisans became extinct when the Beast travelled to Benelisa and fed on them. Before they became extinct, the Benelisans sent Azoth to locate and destroy the Beast. (PROSE: The Taint)
• Two hundred species, including Irradiate Grinderstag and the Stellar Raptors, were driven to extinction by the Endangered Dangerous Species Society. (PROSE: The Doctor Trap)
• The Thains became extinct in 6000 BC. (PROSE: Placebo Effect)
• The Tytheg became extinct by the 26th century. (PROSE: St Anthony's Fire)
• The Time Lords erased the Charons before they existed as they feared that all other life in the Universe could not co-exist alongside them due to their ability to warp the fabric of the universe. Only one Charon somehow survived the death of its people and constructed a pocket universe. The Seventh Doctor confronted the Charon and learned that, after being alone for so long, it wanted to die. The Doctor sadly granted its wish. (PROSE: Sky Pirates!)
• The Valnaxi were driven to near-extinction in 118 at the end of the Valnaxi-Wurm War. (PROSE: The Art of Destruction)
• When the Vervoids went on a rampage on Hyperion III, the Sixth Doctor was forced to kill them all. (TV: Terror of the Vervoids)
• The virus from the drug Bliss, of the Mood drugs from New Earth in 5000000029, killed virtually the entire population of the planet in precisely seven minutes, save from the sealed off inhabitants of New New York Undercity. The virus then had no one to feed on, and eventually starved to extinction. (TV: Gridlock)
• The Aeolians were driven to near extinction in the Centaurian Catastrophe, leaving only two known survivors left. (TV: Aeolian)
• When the Weeping Angels arrived on Alfava Metraxis, they wiped out the Aplans. (TV: The Time of Angels)
• The Shugs accidentally wiped themselves out when they brought a virus from the past into their time. (PROSE: Walking to Babylon)
• A tiger-like species was wiped out in unknown circumstances. Lady Huntingdon and her granddaughter Bella Huntingdon both survived and escaped to Earth. (PROSE: Old Flames)
• The Fifth Doctor believed that the Jovians of Jupiter had become extinct by the 24th century. (AUDIO: The Jupiter Conjunction)
• The Titanthropes became extinct before modern man appeared. (AUDIO: Last of the Titans)

Earth extinctions

• The dodo went extinct in 1681. (PROSE: The Last Dodo)
• The ostrich and the black rhinoceros became extinct in 2051. (REF Doctor Who: Monsters and Villains)
• Numerous species went extinct during the Ozone Purge of 2106, including sheep, sparrows and cats. (PROSE: Lucifer Rising)
• Tigers went extinct before 2148. (PROSE: St Anthony's Fire)
• Human Badgers were created when the badger became extinct. (PROSE: The Pirate Loop)

Other references

• The last survivor of the Astrophia Tribe became a hunter, collecting the last members of several extinct species. (COMIC: Agent Provocateur)
• The Museum of the Last Ones was a museum that preserved and kept a single living specimen of every extinct species. (PROSE: The Last Dodo)
• The Silurians were capable of bringing species back from extinction, such as many species of dinosaurs. (TV: Doctor Who and the Silurians, PROSE: Blood Heat)
• The Klempari defence was a common ruse in interrogation. The subject would claim to be the last of their kind. When the Eleventh Doctor questioned the Silurian, Alaya, she claimed to be the last of her species. He knew she was lying because he was the last of his species, and told her not to insult him. (TV: The Hungry Earth)

Behind the scenes

According to non-narrative information in DWBIT 41, the Aridians were exterminated by the Daleks after they destroyed the Mire Beasts.