The late Pleistocene witnessed the extinction of 35 genera of largeNorth American mammals. The last appearance dates of 16 of thesegenera securely fall between 12,000 and 10,000 radiocarbon years ago(≈13,800–11,400 calendar years B.P.). Whether the absence of fossiloccurrences for the remaining 19 genera from this time interval is theresult of sampling error or temporally staggered extinctions is unclear.The cause of the extinctions has been exceptionally tricky to resolve inNA because the time of extinction overlaps both a critical one for cli-mate change and the time that the Clovis people flourished, althoughit is hard to see why a more livable climate would lead to a massextinction.

There is no question that humans played a role in this ‘mass extinction in a geological instant’ in NorthAmerica. Archeological sites that illustrate heavy human predation on large mammals in that time periodinclude the 15,000 year old Mezhirich site 90 miles south of Kiev in the Ukraine there are 4 oval shapeddwelling built of 70 tons of mammoth bones from at least 200 kills (mammoths went extinct in Eurasia inthe same period). One dwelling has an outer wall composed of 95 mammoth mandibles stacked on top ofone another in a herringbone pattern. A site in Czechoslovakia has over 1000 mammoths. . The most spec-tacular accumulation of all exists at Solutre in France, where at the foot of a steep cliff extensive depositsmore than 3 feet thick contain the bones of 10,000 to 100,000 horses, either driven to their deaths off thetop of the cliff or ambushed in a narrow pass down below. (fm The Creative Explosion pg 60).

In North America there is ample evidence of the heavy toll that Native Americans could take on the largemammals present in more recent times. A stampede of bison 150 miles southeast of Denver drove 190 ofthe animals over a cliffA wikipedia page titled ‘Buffalo Jumps’ notes that Native Americans “herded the bison and drove themover the cliff, breaking their legs and rendering them immobile. Tribe members waiting below closed inwith spears and bows to finish the kills. The Blackfoot Indians called the buffalo jumps "pishkun", whichloosely translates as "deep blood kettle". This type of hunting was a communal event which occurred asearly as 12,000 years ago and lasted until at least 1500 CE, around the time of the introduction of horses.

On all of the continents and islands where Homo sapiens was a recent arrival during the late Pleistoceneand Recent Eras, there were die-offs of large animals. A recent dating of the extinction of a large flightlessbird in Australia using an amino acid technique on eggshells indicates 50,000 years ago--just when Ab-origines arrived. Moas in Tasmania survived until humans arrived 800 years ago. In 1999 a rigorouslytested radiocarbon dating showed that the last occurrence of ground sloths in Cuba was 6250 years ago,around the time that people first arrived there. Ground sloths went extinct on the continent 13,000 yearsago. Of course, there was no large extinction event in Africa, where the megafauna and humans had co-evolved.

In 1839 Charles Darwin wrote ‘It is impossible to reflect on the state of the American continent withoutastonishment. Formerly it must have swarmed with great monsters; now we find mere pygmies com-pared with the antecedent races. “ On pages 3 & 4 are images of 28 species of large mammals that wentextinct at the end of the last glacial advance; 64 such species are listed below.

Alfred Russel Wallace observed that on a global scale, ‘We live in a zoologically impoverished world,from which all the hugest and fiercest and strangest forms have recently disappeared."

Pleistocene Mammal Extinctions

compiled by Dana Visalli/dana@methownet.com/www.methownaturalist.com

A short-faced bear Arctodus simus, showing sizerelative to an adult human. Some weighedover a

ton, twice the size of a grizzly bear.

Common Name Scientific Name Family Last Appearance (years ago)Xenarthra (anteaters, sloths and armadillos)Beautiful armadillo Dasypus bellus Dasypodidae 11,000Panamerican ground sloth Eremotherium laurillardi Megatheriidae 11,000Rusconi's ground sloth Eremotherium rusconi Megatheriidae 39,000Ground sloth Glossotherium robustum Mylodontidae 9000Simpson's glyptodont Glyptotherium floridanum Glyptodontidae 23,000Northern pampathere Holmesina major (3+ species) Pampatheriidae 11,000Jefferson's ground sloth Megalonyx jeffersonii Megalonychidae 11,500Florida ground sloth Megalonyx leptostomus Megalonychidae 11,000Shasta ground sloth Nothrotheriops shastensis Megatheriidae 11,500Harlan’s Ground sloth Paramylodon harlani Mylodontidae 11,000

CarnivoraGiant short-faced bear Arctodus simus Ursidae 11,000Short-faced skunk Brachyprotoma obtusata Mustelidae 13.700Dire wolf Canis dirus Canidae 9000Dhole Cuon alpinus* Canidae 12,000Scimitar cat Homotherium serum Felidae 10,000American cheetah1 Miracinonyx inexpectatus Felidae 11,000American cheetah2 Miracinonyx trumani Felidae 15,000American lion Panthera (leo) atrox Felidae 11,000Sabertooth Cat Smilodon fatalis Felidae 11,000Florida cave bear Tremarctos floridanus Ursidae 23,000

RodentiaGiant beaver Castoroides leiseyorum Castoridae 11,000Giant beaver Castoroides ohioensis Castoridae 11,000Holmes's capybara Hydrochoeris holmesi Hydrochoeridae 12,000Pinckney's capybara Neochoerus pinckneyi Hydrochoeridae ~13,000

LagomorphaAztlan rabbit Aztlanolagus agilis Leporidae >31,000

PerissodactylaMexican horse Equus conversidens Equidae 11,000Yukon horse Equus lambei Equidae 11,000Scott’s horse Equus scotti Equidae` 11,000Hagerman horse Equus simplicidens Equidae 10,000California tapir Tapirus californicus Tapiridae 11,000Cope’s tapir Tapirus copei Tapiridae 11,000California tapir Tapirus merriami Tapiridae 11,000Vero tapir Tapirus veroensis Tapiridae 12,000

ArtiodactylaLong-horned bison Bison latifrons Bovidae 20,000Steppe bison Bison priscus (antiquus) Bovidae 8000Harlan’s musk-ox Bootherium bombifrons Bovidae 11,000Yesterday’s (Western) camel Camelops hesternus Camelidae 10,500

Pleistocene Mammal Extinctions in North America

Diminutive pronghorn Capromeryx minor (3 species) Antilocapridae 12,000Stag moose Cervalces scotti Cervidae 11,500Shrub ox Euceratherium collinum Bovidae 11,500Large-headed llama Hemiauchenia macrocephala Camelidae 12,000Long-nosed peccary Mylohyus (5 species) Tayiassuidae 12,000Mountain deer Odocoileus lucasi (was Navahoceros) Cervidae 13,000Harrington’s mountain goat Oreamnos harringtoni Caprinidae 12,000Stout-legged llama Palaeolama mirifica Camelidae 11,000Flat-headed peccary Platygonus (9 species) Tayassuidae 11,000Pronghorn Stockoceros onusrosagris Antilocapridae 11,000Saiga Saiga tartarica* Bovidae 12,000Shuler’s pronghorn Tetrameryx schuleri Antilocapridae 23,000

ProboscideaGomphothere Cuvieronius hyodon Gomphotheriidae 12,500American mastodon Mammut americanum Mammutidae 10,500Columbian mammoth Mammuthus columbi Elephantidae 10,500 ~64 species listed

Aves- BirdsWoodward’s eagle Amplibuteo woodwardi Accipitridae 12,000American condor Breagyps sp Ca5thartidae 13,000Dagett’s walking eagle Buteogallus daggetti Accipitridae 13,000Sea Duck Chendytes lawi Anatidae 2500La Brea stork Cicona matha Ciconiidae ~13,000California turkey Meleagris californica Meleagrididae 10,000Errant eagle Neogyps errans Accipitridae ~13,000Floridan hawk eagle Spizaetus grinnelli Accipitridae ~13,000Merriam’s Teratorn Teratornis merriami Teratornithidae 10,000Teratorn Teratornis wooodburnensis Teratornithidae 11,000

*The two starred species are extinct in North America but still exist elsewhere

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_North_American_animals_extinct_in_the_Holocene (names many species, not all)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_extinctions This timeline runs from 12,000 years ago to about the year 2000.

Beautiful ArmadilloDasypus bellus

Ground SlothGlossotherium robustum

Panamerican Ground SlothEremotherium laurillardi

Panamerican Ground SlothEremotherium laurillardi

Jefferson’s Ground SlothMegalonyx jeffersonii

Shasta Ground SlothNothrotheriops shastensis

Scimitar CatHomotherium serum

Dire WolfCanis dirus

Giant Short-faced BearArctodus simus

American LionPanthera atrox

Sabertooth CatSmilidon fatalis

Mexican HorseEquus conversidens

Vero TapirTapirus veroensis

California TapirTapirus californicus

Yukon HorseEquus lambei

Extinct North American Pleistocene Mammals

Yesterday’s CamelCamelops hesternum

Harlan’s Musk-oxBootherium bombifrons

Large-headed LlamaHemiauchenia macrocephala

Short-legged LlamaPalaeolama mirifica

Shrub OxEuceratherium collinum

Stag MooseCervales scotti

Long-horned BisonBison latifrons

GomphothereCuvieronius hyodon

American MastodonMammut americanum

Columbian MammothMammuthus comumbi

Pygmy MammothMammuthus exilis

Woolly MammothMammuthus prmigenius

compiled by Dana Visalli/dana@methownet.com/www.methownaturalist.com

Mass extinctions of large mammals (and large birds) occurred on different continents and islands soon after humansarrived in those places. Graphic from The Diversity of Life by E.O. Wilson.