What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America?

The continent of North America is a vast and wild land, it is also home to large mammals such as brown bears, gray wolves, bison or elk . In fact, tens of thousands In the past, there were a lot of animals that were much bigger than that, like mammoths and saber-toothed tigers, living and wandering all over the continent. It is only the past. What effect did the disappearance of these large animals have on North America or did that bring us?

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 1

Bison on the North American continent.

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 2

North America during the ice age.

At the end of the Pleistocene, although the Earth is in an ice age, the continent of North America is still considered a paradise of giant animals. Mammoths have huge, long tusks, long-haired rhinos with large bodies or saber-tooth tigers with long fangs are all iconic creatures here.

But since 50,000 years ago, with the disappearance of giant animals on the Australian continent, the wave of extinction of the giant animals swept the world and North America was no exception. Within 5,000 years, 47 giant animal genera in North America had 33 genera became extinct.

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 3

One of the mammoth species that lives in North America.

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 4

North American lion.

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 5

Giant short-faced bear as tall as 3 meters tall when standing on two feet.

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 6

Compare the body shape of giant llamas to humans and modern desert camels.

The cause of this mass extinction event is also directly related to humans, the latest research shows that 15,000 years ago Homo sapiens (smart people) crossed Bering Land - "The Bridge of Time "1,000 km wide to enter North America from Asia, they are excellent hunters who can use weapons to hunt and kill large animals as a food source to feed themselves and their families.

The cruel killings of mankind along with climate change have caused large North American mammals to disappear and put an end to the age of the giant creatures on the North American continent .

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 7

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 8

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 9

The manmade stone spear is very sharp.

The disappearance of giant animals is probably just the extinction of each species. It doesn't seem to cause the collapse of the North American ecosystem, but what are the consequences?

In this regard, a research team at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in the United States published a study called "Survival of mammalian communities after the extinction of giant animals at the end of the World. Pleistocene ". The article states that the disappearance of large mammals has led to a decline in the interaction among surviving animals, which has made the ecosystem more vulnerable.

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 10

Fossils of mammoths in Colombia.

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 11

Today, people can only know mammoths through the museum skeleton.

To get accurate data, the team selected 93 mammals that have lived in North America since the time of the mass extinction event to date and then counted the frequency of these animals in Hundreds of fossil locations in North America to determine the change in the level of association between them. Fossil sites date back 20,000 years to 2000 years ago. This period was the main period of mass extinction of mammals.

After determining the degree of association between species in different periods, the researchers analyzed in depth whether this link was influenced by biological or abiotic factors.

Studies have shown that in the age of giant mammals, animals are more closely linked and form a complex ecological network.

The more species within the ecosystem, the more complex the linkage, the more stable the whole ecosystem and the stronger the ability to resist risks.

In contrast, with the disappearance of large mammals, the connection between species becomes weaker and the ecosystem becomes unstable and can lead to the collapse of the entire ecosystem!

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 12

What are the consequences of the extinction of large mammals in North America? Picture 13

Through studies of the impact of the extinction of large mammals in North America on the ecosystem, we can learn that it seems that the extinction of large mammals does not cause the collapse of the North American ecosystem but in reality, the ecosystem is slowly weakening.

This research is not only significant in paleontology, but also of great significance for the protection of the large mammals still living on our planet today. Not only does it retain biodiversity for nature, moreover, it also ensures the health and stability of the natural environment and ecosystems.