The Capitanian mass extinction event, also known as the end-Guadalupian,[2] Guadalupian-Lopingian,[3] or pre-Lopingian extinction[4] began around 262 million years ago with its most intense pulse peaking at 259 million years ago,[5] marking the end of the Capitanian stage and Guadalupian (Middle Permian) epoch of the Permian. Historically conflated with the better-known Permian–Triassic extinction, it was only recognised as a distinct event in 1994.[6][7] Despite this, the mass extinction is believed to be the third-largest of the Phanerozoic in terms of the percentage of genera (33-35%) and species (60-63%) lost after the end-Permian and Late Ordovician mass extinction,[6][8] while being the fifth worst in terms of ecological severity.[clarification needed][9] The global nature of the Capitanian mass extinction has been called into question by some[quantify] palaeontologists as a result of some analyses finding it to have affected only low-latitude taxa in the Northern Hemisphere.[10]