Thread: Invaded or settled?

Originally Posted by Looper

Chas was saying this about the red indians. The aboriginals are not masters of conservation. They wiped out the truly amazing megafauna of Australia with their hunting and slash and burn techniques. Like the bison in USA except in our case it was to complete extinction.

The so called amazing megafauna was so small it had to be reclassified by lower much weight measurement.

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

The extinction dates do coincide with the arrival of aboriginal settlers so you get half a point for that.

As far as the N American Bison is concerned, the near extinction was caused by rapidly increasing population and hunting by settlers. Native American populations were not to blame.

Originally Posted by chassamui

I suspect that early historians were so ashamed of what actually happened, that they buried the truth, and sanitised their version for public consumption.

That's precisely what they did.

Also most of the later roundups and killings of Aboriginals were hidden by a code of silence among the early settlers.

Originally Posted by chassamui

As far as the N American Bison is concerned, the near extinction was caused by rapidly increasing population and hunting by settlers. Native American populations were not to blame.

True, the buffalo slaughter in America was one of the biggest needless culls of fauna in history, designed to increase pasture for ranchers.

It wasn't just for the trade value of the beats, there was also a deliberate policy of extermination, so reducing the native Amerinds of one of their primary food sources.

Unconsumed, most of the carcasses were just left to rot.

Originally Posted by chassamui

As far as the N American Bison is concerned, the near extinction was caused by rapidly increasing population and

climate change... most species fail when their environment changes suddenly and catastrophically, and they can't adjust as happened with things like the glyptodonts and ground sloths, and other humanoids.

Originally Posted by CaptainNemo

glyptodonts and ground sloths, and other humanoids.