Species-specific responses of Late Quaternary megafauna to climate and humans
Despite decades of research, the roles of climate and humans in driving the dramatic extinctions of large-bodied mammals during the Late Quaternary period remain contentious. Here we use ancient DNA, species distribution models and the human fossil record to elucidate how climate and humans shaped t...
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ftunivadelaidedl:oai:digital.library.adelaide.edu.au:2440/68430 2023-05-15T17:13:37+02:00 Species-specific responses of Late Quaternary megafauna to climate and humans Cooper, A. 2011 http://hdl.handle.net/2440/68430 https://doi.org/10.1038/nature10574 en eng Nature Publishing Group Nature, 2011; 479(7373):359-364 0028-0836 1476-4687 http://hdl.handle.net/2440/68430 doi:10.1038/nature10574 Cooper, A. [0000-0002-7738-7851] ©2011 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved Animals Mammals Bison Reindeer Horses Humans DNA Mitochondrial Bayes Theorem Population Dynamics Species Specificity Geography Time Factors Fossils Human Activities History Ancient Molecular Sequence Data Europe Siberia Extinction Biological Genetic Variation Mammoths Climate Change Biota Journal article 2011 ftunivadelaidedl https://doi.org/10.1038/nature10574 2023-02-05T19:33:12Z Despite decades of research, the roles of climate and humans in driving the dramatic extinctions of large-bodied mammals during the Late Quaternary period remain contentious. Here we use ancient DNA, species distribution models and the human fossil record to elucidate how climate and humans shaped the demographic history of woolly rhinoceros, woolly mammoth, wild horse, reindeer, bison and musk ox. We show that climate has been a major driver of population change over the past 50,000 years. However, each species responds differently to the effects of climatic shifts, habitat redistribution and human encroachment. Although climate change alone can explain the extinction of some species, such as Eurasian musk ox and woolly rhinoceros, a combination of climatic and anthropogenic effects appears to be responsible for the extinction of others, including Eurasian steppe bison and wild horse. We find no genetic signature or any distinctive range dynamics distinguishing extinct from surviving species, emphasizing the challenges associated with predicting future responses of extant mammals to climate and human-mediated habitat change. Eline D. Lorenzen.Alan Cooper.et al. Article in Journal/Newspaper musk ox Siberia The University of Adelaide: Digital Library Nature 479 7373 359 364 |
institution |
Open Polar |
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The University of Adelaide: Digital Library |
op_collection_id |
ftunivadelaidedl |
language |
English |
topic |
Animals Mammals Bison Reindeer Horses Humans DNA Mitochondrial Bayes Theorem Population Dynamics Species Specificity Geography Time Factors Fossils Human Activities History Ancient Molecular Sequence Data Europe Siberia Extinction Biological Genetic Variation Mammoths Climate Change Biota |
spellingShingle |
Animals Mammals Bison Reindeer Horses Humans DNA Mitochondrial Bayes Theorem Population Dynamics Species Specificity Geography Time Factors Fossils Human Activities History Ancient Molecular Sequence Data Europe Siberia Extinction Biological Genetic Variation Mammoths Climate Change Biota Cooper, A. Species-specific responses of Late Quaternary megafauna to climate and humans |
topic_facet |
Animals Mammals Bison Reindeer Horses Humans DNA Mitochondrial Bayes Theorem Population Dynamics Species Specificity Geography Time Factors Fossils Human Activities History Ancient Molecular Sequence Data Europe Siberia Extinction Biological Genetic Variation Mammoths Climate Change Biota |
description |
Despite decades of research, the roles of climate and humans in driving the dramatic extinctions of large-bodied mammals during the Late Quaternary period remain contentious. Here we use ancient DNA, species distribution models and the human fossil record to elucidate how climate and humans shaped the demographic history of woolly rhinoceros, woolly mammoth, wild horse, reindeer, bison and musk ox. We show that climate has been a major driver of population change over the past 50,000 years. However, each species responds differently to the effects of climatic shifts, habitat redistribution and human encroachment. Although climate change alone can explain the extinction of some species, such as Eurasian musk ox and woolly rhinoceros, a combination of climatic and anthropogenic effects appears to be responsible for the extinction of others, including Eurasian steppe bison and wild horse. We find no genetic signature or any distinctive range dynamics distinguishing extinct from surviving species, emphasizing the challenges associated with predicting future responses of extant mammals to climate and human-mediated habitat change. Eline D. Lorenzen.Alan Cooper.et al. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Cooper, A. |
author_facet |
Cooper, A. |
author_sort |
Cooper, A. |
title |
Species-specific responses of Late Quaternary megafauna to climate and humans |
title_short |
Species-specific responses of Late Quaternary megafauna to climate and humans |
title_full |
Species-specific responses of Late Quaternary megafauna to climate and humans |
title_fullStr |
Species-specific responses of Late Quaternary megafauna to climate and humans |
title_full_unstemmed |
Species-specific responses of Late Quaternary megafauna to climate and humans |
title_sort |
species-specific responses of late quaternary megafauna to climate and humans |
publisher |
Nature Publishing Group |
publishDate |
2011 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/2440/68430 https://doi.org/10.1038/nature10574 |
genre |
musk ox Siberia |
genre_facet |
musk ox Siberia |
op_relation |
Nature, 2011; 479(7373):359-364 0028-0836 1476-4687 http://hdl.handle.net/2440/68430 doi:10.1038/nature10574 Cooper, A. [0000-0002-7738-7851] |
op_rights |
©2011 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1038/nature10574 |
container_title |
Nature |
container_volume |
479 |
container_issue |
7373 |
container_start_page |
359 |
op_container_end_page |
364 |
_version_ |
1766070778272415744 |