Human Migration Caused Mammal Species Extinction on Caribbean Islands

The primary cause of the extinction of native mammal species at the Caribbean islands that is also known as "lost world" was the arrival of humans throughout the islands. Caribbean islands have been a centre point of mammal extinction that is expected to be happened some 12,000 years back since the end of the last glaciations. There is no certain theory of analyzing whether natural changes or human influence are responsible for those mass extinctions.

The animals that are extinct at this island are giant rodents, vampire bats, enigmatic monkeys, ground sloths, shrews and dozens of other ancient mammals. Many large mammals from ground sloths to mastodons also disappeared from continental North America. The drastic and natural changes in the environment and the arrival of people both contributed to the extinction at the continent roughly at the same time. During a research the scientists report analyses of the most comprehensive radiocarbon data set of Caribbean mammals and human arrivals in the Caribbean. Scientists used different methods at various sites to mark the extinction.

After a long research the researchers developed a chronology by collecting established fossil dates reported in many of already-published and reviewed documents. The research concluded that most mammal extinctions were followed by the human’s arrival on various islands in the Caribbean, and not before. In examining data from various reports, the evidence highlights the need for urgent human intervention to protect the native mammal species.

Content- www.sciencedaily.com

By- Anita Aishvarya