There were no dinosaurs at the beginning of the Triassic, but there were many amphibians and some reptiles and dicynodonts (like Lystrosaurus). During the early Triassic, corals appeared and ammonites recovered from the Permian extinction. Seed plants dominated the land; in the Northern hemisphere, conifers flourish. Glossopteris was the dominant southern hemisphere tree during the Early Triassic period.

The Triassic Period was the first period of the Mesozoic Era and occurred between 251 million and 199 million years ago

Climate was generally very dry over much of Pangaea with very hot summers and cold winters in the continental interior.