EXPLAIN A RECENT The type and number of species are constantly changing.

Extinction is the death of

all the members of one species. Sometimes there are a major extinction events,
EXTINCTION EVENT where a number of different species have become extinct at around the same time.
This happened to the Australian megafauna.

During the Pleistocene epoch (1.6 million- 10 000 years ago) Australia was home to giant
animals known collectively as the Australian megafauna. Eg Diprotodon (large wombat),
Megalania (large goanna) and Procoptodon (giant kangaroo). Megafauna existed in Europe
and North America (woolly mammoths), sabre toothed cats) and in Africa (giraffes,
There is ongoing debate as to what may have led to the changes in the Australian
hippopotamus, elephants).
flora and fauna. Until recently many supported the theory that it was the result of
climate change associated with the last ice age. Opponents of this theory propose
that it was humans that cause the extinctions.
Current researchers think it may be a combination of the two.

Surfing pg 172-3

Rainforests were contracting due to the drying climate. Rainforests returned a large amount
THEORY 1- CHANGES IN THE CLIMATE of moisture to the atmosphere due to transpiration. As rainforest decreased in size the
eucalypt forest was less efficient in retaining water and returning it to the atmosphere.

The continent dried out due to the ice age


Fires broke out as the climate became hotter, drier vegetation was susceptible to lightning
strikes.
For
• Large animals eg megafauna who were dependant on water would have died out. They
may also not have been able to cope with the sudden increase in temperature.
• They may also have died out because they could not manage the sudden change in
temperature, breeding season may have been affected and possibly the plants they ate
could have become less freely available or less palatable.

THEORY 2- THE ARRIVAL OF HUMANS

Against
• Weren't all ice ages similar in conditions, why the big impact this time
• Extinctions occurred prior to ice age
• Climate change today does not seem to be selecting against large species
Aborginals were extremely successful hunters and used fire to back burn. They hunted the
megafauna because they were slower. Evidence from the Madjedbebe site (330 km east of
Darwin) suggest that because these megafauna were slower they were the ones that were
killed.

The introduction of the dingo may have also led to a decrease in the diversity.

Against For
• No fossil evidence of kill sites • Increase in carbon deposits in fossils coincides with the time of arrival of humans
• There is an overlap in the size of the smallest extinct species and of the largest • The smaller species of megafauna that became extinct had short limbs making
present-day species them slow
THEORY 3- LEVEL OF NUTRIENTS EVIDENCE OF HUMANS AND MEGAFAUNA
COEXISTING
There were such low levels of nutrients in the soils in Australia that this may have Cuddie springs is a fossil site in central NSW where the bones of megafauna and
caused a nutrient depletion throughout the food web, resulting in smaller animals. stone tools have been found in close proximity.
The smaller size of mammals in Australia compared with their counterparts on other
continents.

IDEAS FOR WORK

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wtAW8YOPhE Recent extinction worksheet- surfing 107 & 108

Blitzing pg 219 the extinction of the Tasmanian tiger
To be submitted Megafauna extinction- nelson