Clovis Points in Mastodon

[CarsonChris]

Mastodon in Your Backyard: Ancient Hunters : Video : Discovery Channel Channel

[Jayhawk]

Humans killed all the Mastodon's???? Just my opinion, but i think that is all Hog Wash.

[Mud Hawk]

Enh... I am rather certain humans are still pretty active in the "wiping out a species" department.

[drdave514]

Anything that is able to reduce a species over that magic threshold of reproducing at a slower rate than they are dying can be given credit. I'd say humans played a big role in it but other factors like weather probably paid a big part as well. There may have been a disease problem that is unknown, which often happens to decrease numbers below that threshold.

Were it not for some concerted effort, there would be no buffalo in this country either.

[Cluton]

That's a good point Dr! I didn't ever think about the almost extinct bison!!? That does make sense!!

[erb]

Originally Posted by Jayhawk

Humans killed all the Mastodon's???? Just my opinion, but i think that is all Hog Wash.

I am kind of with you on this. The mammoth, mastodon, horse, camel, saber tooth cat, giant sloth, dire wolf, short faced bear and others all gone at about the same time. It is hard for me to imagine that paleo hunters were able to achieve this .

[latrans]

Originally Posted by erb

I am kind of with you on this. The mammoth, mastodon, horse, camel, saber tooth cat, giant sloth, dire wolf, short faced bear and others all gone at about the same time. It is hard for me to imagine that paleo hunters were able to achieve this .

If you have changing climatic conditions coupled with disruptions in the food chain at multiple points due changes in flora plus novel hunting pressure from humans - I can totally believe it, change is rarely good for any organism at the species level.

[Scotto]

When you read the accounts of how absolutely huge the flocks of passenger Pigeons were, that they "darkened the sun for hours," it is so sad to think that man just killed them all off, and that the last one died in captivity in 1936.

[kliff]

The Buffalo were here in great numbers until europeans began killing them for sport and to get rid of the main food source of the native americans. In my opinion they would not kill there food source to the point of wiping it out, I think they were smarter than that.

[drdave514]

When the numbers are dwindled to a certain point it's harder to find them and not cost effective to harvest them. Not even to kill them for sport. I agree why they did it but I don't agree that avoiding extinction is why the stopped.