Medea hypothesis, somewhat opposite to Gaia hypothesis, explains extinction events in Earth history. There is a microbial force under higher life forms, which triggers those events under some conditions. But higher living forms can also cause Medean event.
The Medea hypothesis is a term coined by paleontologist Peter Ward for the anti-Gaian hypothesis that multicellular life, understood as a superorganism, is suicidal. In this view, microbial-triggered mass extinctions are attempts to return the Earth to the microbial-dominated state it has been for most of its history. The metaphor refers to the mythological Medea (representing the Earth), who kills her own children (multicellular life).
Paleontologist Peter Ward's "Medea hypothesis": Life is out to get you Medea hypothesis - Wikipedia