Australian megafauna

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A marsupial lion skeleton in the Naracoorte Caves, South Australia Thylacoleo skeleton in Naracoorte Caves.jpg
A marsupial lion skeleton in the Naracoorte Caves, South Australia

The term Australian megafauna refers to the megafauna in Australia [1] during the Pleistocene Epoch. Most of these species became extinct during the latter half of the Pleistocene, and the roles of human and climatic factors in their extinction are contested.

Contents

There are similarities between the prehistoric Australian megafauna and some mythical creatures from the Aboriginal Dreamtime. [2]

Causes of extinction

Many modern researchers, including Tim Flannery, think that with the arrival of early Aboriginal Australians (around 70,000~65,000 years ago), hunting and the use of fire to manage their environment may have contributed to the extinction of the megafauna. [3] Increased aridity during peak glaciation (about 18,000 years ago) may have also contributed, but most of the megafauna were already extinct by this time.[ citation needed ] Others, including Steve Wroe, note that records in the Australian Pleistocene are rare, and there is not enough data to definitively determine the time of extinction of many of the species, with many of the species having no confirmed record within the last 100,000 years. They suggest that many of the extinctions had been staggered over the course of the late Middle Pleistocene and early Late Pleistocene, prior to human arrival, due to climatic stress. [4]

Procoptodon goliah reconstruction Procoptodon goliah NT.png
Procoptodon goliah reconstruction
Genyornis newtoni Genyornis (Genyornis newtoni).png
Genyornis newtoni

New evidence based on accurate optically stimulated luminescence and uranium-thorium dating of megafaunal remains suggests that humans were the ultimate cause of the extinction for some of the megafauna in Australia. [5] [6] The dates derived show that all forms of megafauna on the Australian mainland became extinct in the same rapid timeframe—approximately 46,000 years ago [1] —the period when the earliest humans first arrived in Australia (around 70,000~65,000 years ago long chronology and 50,000 years ago short chronology). [3] However, these results were subsequently disputed, with another study showing that 50 of 88 megafaunal species have no dates postdating the penultimate glacial maximum around 130,000 years ago, and there was only firm evidence for overlap of 8-14 megafaunal species with people. [4] Analysis of oxygen and carbon isotopes from teeth of megafauna indicate the regional climates at the time of extinction were similar to arid regional climates of today and that the megafauna were well adapted to arid climates. [5] The dates derived have been interpreted as suggesting that the main mechanism for extinction was human burning of a landscape that was then much less fire-adapted; oxygen and carbon isotopes of teeth indicate sudden, drastic, non-climate-related changes in vegetation and in the diet of surviving marsupial species. However, early Aboriginal peoples appear to have rapidly eliminated the megafauna of Tasmania about 41,000 years ago (following formation of a land bridge to Australia about 43,000 years ago as Ice Age sea levels declined) without using fire to modify the environment there, [7] [8] [9] implying that at least in this case hunting was the most important factor. It has also been suggested that the vegetational changes that occurred on the mainland were a consequence, rather than a cause, of the elimination of the megafauna. [7] This idea is supported by sediment cores from Lynch's Crater in Queensland, which suggest that fire increased in the local ecosystem about a century after the disappearance of Sporormiella (a fungus found in herbivorous animal dung used as a megafaunal proxy), leading to a subsequent transition to fire-tolerant sclerophyll vegetation. [10] [11] [12] However, the use of Sporormiella as a megafaunal proxy has been criticised, noting that Sporormiella is found sporadically in the dung of various herbivorous species, including extant emus and kangaroos, not just megafauna, that its presence depends on a variety of factors, often unrelated to megafaunal abundance, and that in Cuddie Springs, a well known megafaunal site, the densities of Sporormiella were consistently low. [13] A study of extinct megafauna at the Walker Creek site in Queensland, found that their disappearance from the site after 40 kya came after an extended period of environmental deterioration. [14]

Chemical analysis of fragments of eggshells of Genyornis newtoni , a flightless bird that became extinct in Australia, from over 200 sites, revealed scorch marks consistent with cooking in human-made fires, presumably the first direct evidence of human contribution to the extinction of a species of the Australian megafauna. [15] This was later contested by another study that noted the too small dimensions (126 x 97 mm, roughly like the emu eggs, while the moa eggs were about 240 mm) for the Genyornis supposed eggs, and rather, attributed them to another extinct, but much smaller bird, the megapode Progura . [16] The real time that saw Genyornis vanish is still an open question, but this was believed as one of the best documented megafauna extinctions in Australia.

"Imperceptive overkill", a scenario where anthropogenic pressures take place, slowly and gradually wiping the megafauna out, has been suggested. [17]

On the other hand, there is also evidence to suggest that (contrary to other conclusions) the megafauna lived alongside humans for several thousand years. [18] [19] The question of if (and how) the megafauna died before the arrival of humans is still debated; with some authors maintaining that only a minority of such fauna remained by the time the first humans settled on the mainland. [20] One of the most important advocates of human role, Tim Flannery, author of the book Future Eaters, was also heavily criticised for his conclusions. [21] [22] A surprisingly late date of 33-37 kya is known for a Zygomaturus specimen from the Willandra Lakes Region in New South Wales, the latest known date for any Australian Megafauna. This is well after aboriginal arrival in Australia around 50 kya. [23]

A 2021 study found that the rate of extinction of Australia's megafauna is rather unusual, with some more generalistic species having gone extinct earlier while highly specialised ones having become extinct later or even still surviving today. A mosaic cause of extinction with different anthropogenic and environmental pressures was proposed. [24]

Living Australian megafauna

The term "megafauna" is usually applied to large animals (over 100 kg (220 lb)). In Australia, however, megafauna were never as large as those found on other continents, and so a more lenient criterion of over 40 kg (88 lb) is often applied. [25]

Marsupials

A red kangaroo Red kangaroo - melbourne zoo.jpg
A red kangaroo

Birds

A southern cassowary Helmkasuar sitzend (fcm).jpg
A southern cassowary

Reptiles

A perentie Perentie Lizard Perth Zoo SMC Spet 2005.jpg
A perentie

Extinct Australian megafauna

The following is an incomplete list of extinct Australian megafauna (monotremes, marsupials, birds and reptiles) in the format:

Monotremes

Hackett's giant echidna Giant Echidna (Zaglossus hacketti).png
Hackett's giant echidna

Monotremes are arranged by size with the largest at the top.

Marsupials

Marsupials are arranged by size, with the largest at the top.

Diprotodon optatum was a hippopotamus-sized marsupial and was most closely related to wombats Diprotodon.jpg
Diprotodon optatum was a hippopotamus-sized marsupial and was most closely related to wombats
Zygomaturus trilobus Zygomaturus BW.jpg
Zygomaturus trilobus

1,000–3,000 kilograms (2,200–6,610 lb)

  • Diprotodon optatum is not only the largest known species of diprotodontid, but also the largest known marsupial to ever exist. Approximately 3 m (10 ft) long and 2 m (7 ft) high at the shoulder and weighing up to 2,780 kg (6,130 lb), [27] it resembled a giant wombat. It is the only marsupial known, living or extinct, to have conducted seasonal migrations. [28]
  • Palorchestes azael was a diprotodontoid similar in size to Zygomaturus. It had long claws to grasp branches with. It lived during the Pleistocene. [2]

100–1,000 kilograms (220–2,200 lb)

  • Euowenia grata
  • Euryzygoma dunense
  • Zygomaturus trilobus was a smaller (bullock-sized, about 2 m (7 ft) long by 1 m (3 ft) high) diprotodontid that may have had a short trunk. It appears to have lived in wetlands, using two fork-like incisors to shovel up reeds and sedges for food.
  • Macropus pearsoni and M. ferragus
  • Mukupirna nambensis , in its own family Mukupirnidae within the Vombatiformes suborder of the large marsupial order Diprotodontia [29]
  • Nototherium was a diprotodontoid relative of the larger Diprotodon.
  • Phascolonus gigas
    Phascolonus gigas Giant Wombat (Phascolonus gigas).png
    Phascolonus gigas
  • Procoptodon goliah (the giant short-faced kangaroo) is the largest-known kangaroo to have ever lived. It grew 2–3 metres (7–10 feet) tall, and weighed up to 230 kg (510 lb).
  • Procoptodon rapha, P. pusio and P. texasensis
  • Protemnodon , a genus of wallaby with four known giant species out of 11 known species [30]
  • Palorchestes parvus
  • Ramsayia magna
  • Sthenurus tindalei and S. atlas
  • Thylacoleo carnifex (the marsupial lion) is the largest known carnivorous mammal to have ever lived in prehistoric Australia, and was of comparable size to female placental mammal lions and tigers, It had a catlike skull with large slicing pre-molars, a retractable thumb-claw and massive forelimbs. It was almost certainly carnivorous and a tree-dweller.

10–100 kilograms (22–220 lb)

Birds

Dromornis stirtoni Dromornis BW.jpg
Dromornis stirtoni

Reptiles

A reconstructed skeleton of the extinct megalania (Varanus priscus) Varanus priscus Melbourne Museum.jpg
A reconstructed skeleton of the extinct megalania (Varanus priscus)
Size comparison of Quinkana Quinkana size.png
Size comparison of Quinkana

Extinct megafauna contemporaneous with Aboriginal Australians

Reconstruction of a hippopotamus-sized Diprotodon Diprotodon sculpture.jpg
Reconstruction of a hippopotamus-sized Diprotodon

Monsters and large animals in Dreamtime stories have been associated with extinct megafauna.

Thylacine as seen in rock art at Ubirr Thylacine rock art at Ubirr.jpg
Thylacine as seen in rock art at Ubirr

The association was made at least as early as 1845, with colonists writing that Aboriginal people identified Diprotodon bones as belonging to bunyips, and Thomas Worsnop concluding that the fear of bunyip attacks at watering holes remembered a time when Diprotodon lived in marshes. [39]

In the early 1900s, John Walter Gregory outlined the Kadimakara (or Kuddimurka or Kadimerkera) story of the Diyari (similar stories being told by nearby peoples), which describes the deserts of Central Australia as having once been "fertile, well-watered plains" with giant gum trees, and almost solid cloud cover overhead. The trees created a roof of vegetation in which lived the strange monsters called Kadimakara—which sometimes came to the ground to eat. One time, the gum trees were destroyed, forcing the Kadimakara to remain on the ground, particularly Lake Eyre and Kalamurina, until they died. [40]

In times of drought and flood, the Diyari performed corroborees (including dances and blood sacrifices) at the bones of the Kadimakara to appease them and request that they intercede with the spirits of rain and clouds. Sites of Kadimakara bones identified by Aboriginal people corresponded with megafauna fossil sites, and an Aboriginal guide identified a Diprotodon jaw as belonging to the Kadimakara. [40]

Gregory speculated that the story could be a remnant from when the Diyari lived elsewhere, or when the geographical conditions of Central Australia were different. The latter possibility would indicate Aboriginal coexistence with megafauna, with Gregory saying: [40]

If, therefore, the geologist can determine whether the bones of the extinct monsters of Lake Eyre correspond to those described in the aboriginal traditions, he can throw light on several interesting problems. If the legends attribute to the extinct animals characters which they possessed, but which the natives could not have inferred from the bones, then the legends are of local origin. They would prove that man inhabited Central Australia, at the same time as the mighty diprotodon and the extinct, giant kangaroos. If, on the other hand, there is no such correspondence between the legends and the fossils, then we must regard the traditions as due to the habit of migratory peoples, of localising in new homes the incidents recorded in their folklore.

—  John Walter Gregory, Dead Heart of Australia

After examining fossils, Gregory concluded that the story was a combination of the two factors, but that the environment of Lake Eyre had probably not changed much since Aboriginal habitation. He concluded that while some references to Kadimakara were probably memories of the crocodiles once found in Lake Eyre, others that describe a "big, heavy land animal, with a single horn on its forehead" were probably references to Diprotodon. [40]

Some of the marsupial lions were the largest mammalian predators in Australia of their time Thylacoleo Australia 2.jpg
Some of the marsupial lions were the largest mammalian predators in Australia of their time

Geologist Michael Welland describes from across Australia Dreamtime "tales of giant creatures that roamed the lush landscape until aridity came and they finally perished in the desiccated marshes of Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre", giving as examples the Kadimakara of Lake Eye, as well as continent-wide stories of the Rainbow Serpent, which he says corresponds with Wonambi naracoortensis . [41]

Journalist Peter Hancock speculates in The Crocodile That Wasn't that a Dreamtime story from the Perth area could be a memory of Varanus priscus . [42] However, the story in question details dingoes attacking or frightening off the alleged V. priscus, when the giant lizard died out nearly 46,000 years before the accepted arrival date of dingoes. [43]

Rock art in the Kimberley region appears to depict a marsupial lion [44] and a marsupial tapir, [45] as does Arnhem land art. [46] Arnhem art also appears to depict Genyornis , a bird that is believed to have gone extinct 40,000 years ago. [47]

An Early Triassic archosauromorph found in Queensland, Kadimakara australiensis , is named after the Kadimakara. [48]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Diprotodon</i> Extinct marsupial genus

Diprotodon is an extinct genus of marsupial from the Pleistocene of Australia containing one species, D. optatum. The earliest finds date to 1.77 million to 780,000 years ago but most specimens are dated to after 110,000 years ago. Its remains were first unearthed in 1830 in Wellington Caves, New South Wales, and contemporaneous paleontologists guessed they belonged to rhinos, elephants, hippos or dugongs. Diprotodon was formally described by English naturalist Richard Owen in 1838, and was the first named Australian fossil mammal, and led Owen to become the foremost authority of his time on other marsupials and Australian megafauna, which were enigmatic to European science.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Megafauna</span> Large animals

In zoology, megafauna are large animals. The precise definition of the term varies widely, though a common threshold is approximately 45 kilograms (99 lb), with other thresholds as low as 10 kilograms (22 lb) or as high as 1,000 kilograms (2,200 lb). Large body size is generally associated with other traits, such as having a slow rate of reproduction and in large herbivores, reduced or negligible adult mortality from being killed by predators.

<i>Genyornis</i> Extinct genus of birds

Genyornis newtoni, also known as the Newton's mihirung, Newton's thunder bird or mihirung paringmal, is an extinct species of large, flightless bird that lived in Australia during the Pleistocene Epoch until around 50,000 years ago. Over two metres in height, they were likely herbivorous. Many other species of Australian megafauna became extinct in Australia around that time, coinciding with the arrival of humans. It is the last known member of the extinct flightless bird family Dromornithidae which had been part of the fauna of the Australian continent for over 30 million years. They are not closely related to ratites such as emus, and their closest living relatives are thought to be fowl.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Megalania</span> Extinct species of giant monitor lizard

Megalania is an extinct species of giant monitor lizard, part of the megafaunal assemblage that inhabited Australia during the Pleistocene. It is the largest terrestrial lizard known to have existed, but the fragmentary nature of known remains make estimates highly uncertain. Recent studies suggest that most known specimens would have reached around 2–3 m (6.6–9.8 ft) in body length excluding the tail, while some individuals would have been significantly larger.

<i>Thylacoleo</i> Extinct genus of marsupials

Thylacoleo is an extinct genus of carnivorous marsupials that lived in Australia from the late Pliocene to the Late Pleistocene, often known as marsupial lions. They were the largest and last members of the family Thylacoleonidae, occupying the position of apex predator within Australian ecosystems. The largest and last species, Thylacoleo carnifex, approached the weight of a lioness. The estimated average weight for the species ranges from 101 to 130 kg.

<i>Procoptodon</i> Extinct genus of marsupials

Procoptodon is an extinct genus of giant short-faced (sthenurine) kangaroos that lived in Australia during the Pleistocene Epoch. P. goliah, the largest known kangaroo species that ever existed, stood at about 2 m (6.6 ft). They weighed about 200–240 kg (440–530 lb). Other members of the genus were smaller, however; Procoptodon gilli was the smallest of all of the sthenurine kangaroos, standing approximately 1 m tall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dromornithidae</span> Extinct family of birds

Dromornithidae, known as mihirungs and informally as thunder birds or demon ducks, were a clade of large, flightless Australian birds of the Oligocene through Pleistocene epochs. All are now extinct. They were long classified in Struthioniformes, but are now usually classified as galloanseres. Dromornithids were part of the Australian megafauna. One species, Dromornis stirtoni, was 3 m tall. Only a single species, Genyornis newtoni survived into the Late Pleistocene. They are thought to have been herbivorous.

Cuddie Springs is a notable archaeological and paleontological site in the semi-arid zone of central northern New South Wales, Australia, near Carinda in Walgett Shire. Cuddie Springs is an open site, with the fossil deposits preserved in a claypan on the floor of an ancient ephemeral lake. The claypan fills with water after local rainstorms and often takes months to dry, a fact which facilitated the survival of fossils over a long period of time.

Australian archaeology is a large sub-field in the discipline of archaeology. Archaeology in Australia takes four main forms: Aboriginal archaeology, historical archaeology, maritime archaeology and the archaeology of the contemporary past. Bridging these sub-disciplines is the important concept of cultural heritage management, which encompasses Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander sites, historical sites, and maritime sites.

The giant koala is an extinct arboreal marsupial which existed in Australia during the Pleistocene epoch. Phascolarctos stirtoni was about one-third larger than the contemporary koala, P. cinereus, and has an estimated weight of 13 kg (29 lb), which is the same weight as a large contemporary male koala.

<i>Sthenurus</i> Extinct genus of marsupials

Sthenurus is an extinct genus of kangaroos. With a length around 3 m (10 ft), some species were twice as large as modern extant species. Sthenurus was related to the better-known Procoptodon. The subfamily Sthenurinae is believed to have separated from its sister taxon, the Macropodinae, halfway through the Miocene, and then its population grew during the Pliocene.

<i>Wonambi</i> Extinct genus of snakes

Wonambi is an extinct genus of madtsoiid snakes that lived in late Neogene to late Quaternary Australia. Species of Wonambi were constrictor snakes unrelated to Australian pythons.

<i>Protemnodon</i> Extinct genus of marsupials

Protemnodon is an extinct genus of megafaunal macropodids that existed in Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea in the Pliocene and Pleistocene. Members of this genus are also called giant kangaroos.

<i>Simosthenurus</i> Extinct genus of marsupials

Simosthenurus, also referred to as the short-faced kangaroo, is an extinct genus of megafaunal macropods that existed in Australia, specifically Tasmania, during the Pleistocene. Analysis of Simosthenurus fossils has contributed to the finding that there are three lineages of macropods: Sthenurinae, Macropodinae, and Lagostrophinae. The genus Simosthenurus was among the sthenurines.

<i>Phascolonus</i> Extinct genus of giant wombat

Phascolonus is an extinct genus of giant wombat known from the Pliocene and Pleistocene of Australia. There is only a single known species, Phascolonus gigas, the largest wombat ever known to have existed, estimated to weigh as much as 200 kg or 360 kg (790 lb). It was described by Richard Owen in 1859. Phascolomys magnus is a probable junior synonym. P. gigas is distinguished from other wombats by its strap-shaped upper incisors. The cranial roof also is noticeably inwardly depressed. The species was abundant across Australia, with remains having been found in all states except Western Australia. It is suggested to have had a preference for arid and semi-arid inland habitats, with a diet consisting of a high amount of low quality vegetation. Though it likely had wide home-ranges, it probably did not stray far from fresh water sources. Abundant remains have been found in Pleistocene aged deposits from Lake Callabonna in South Australia. Unlike its living relatives, it is unlikely that Phascolonus engaged in burrowing. Phascolonus disappeared during the Late Pleistocene Quaternary extinction event around 50-40,000 years ago, together with many other large Australian animals, following the arrival of humans to the Australian continent. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that is closely related to the other giant wombat genera Ramsayia and Sedophascolomys.

<i>Zygomaturus</i> Extinct genus of marsupials

Zygomaturus is an extinct genus of giant marsupial belonging to the family Diprotodontidae which inhabited Australia from the Late Miocene to Late Pleistocene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Late Pleistocene extinctions</span> Extinctions of large mammals in the Late Pleistocene

The Late Pleistocene to the beginning of the Holocene saw the extinction of the majority of the world's megafauna, which resulted in a collapse in faunal density and diversity across the globe. The extinctions during the Late Pleistocene are differentiated from previous extinctions by its extreme size bias towards large animals, and widespread absence of ecological succession to replace these extinct megafaunal species, and the regime shift of previously established faunal relationships and habitats as a consequence. The timing and severity of the extinctions varied by region and are thought to have been driven by varying combinations of human and climatic factors. Human impact on megafauna populations is thought to have been driven by hunting ("overkill"), as well as possibly environmental alteration. The relative importance of human vs climatic factors in the extinctions has been the subject of long-running controversy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diprotodontidae</span> Extinct family of marsupials

Diprotodontidae is an extinct family of large herbivorous marsupials, endemic to Australia and New Guinea during the Oligocene through Pleistocene periods from 28.4 million to 40,000 years ago.

<i>Murrayglossus</i> Extinct species of monotreme

Murrayglossus is an extinct echidna from the Pleistocene of Western Australia. It contains a single species, Murrayglossus hacketti, also called Hackett's giant echidna. Though only from a few bones, researchers suggest that Murrayglossus was the largest monotreme to have ever lived, measuring around 1 metre (3.3 ft) long and weighing around 20–30 kilograms (44–66 lb). Historically treated as a species of long-beaked echidnas, it was separated into its own genus Murrayglossus in 2022. The generic name combines the last name of paleontologist Peter Murray and glossus, the Greek word for "tongue".

Warratyi is the site of a rock shelter in the Flinders Ranges in South Australia. Located around 550 kilometres (340 mi) north of Adelaide and about 200 kilometres (120 mi) inland, it has been identified as the oldest known site of human habitation in inland Australia. Newspapers reported that this rock shelter was discovered by chance in 2011 by a local resident who stumbled upon it while looking for somewhere to go to the toilet. Researchers found thousands of artefacts and bone fragments, which enabled them to date the shelter's occupation to a number of periods between 49,000 and 10,000 years ago. The finds include the earliest evidence in Australia of the development of bone and stone-axe technology, the use of ochre, and interaction with megafauna such as Diprotodon.

References

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  36. ↑ Willis, Paul M.A.; Mackness, Brian S. (1996). "Quinkana babarra, a new species of ziphodont mekosuchine crocodile from the Early Pliocene Bluff Downs Local Fauna, Northern Australia with a revision of the genus". Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales. 116: 143–151.
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