Not all hominins drove extinctions in islands

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Extinctions of (mega-)fauna in several islands around the world have been associated with the arrival of hominins, and therefore have been used as models for extinctions in continental areas.

However, during the pleistocene, arrival of hominins does not necessarily correlate with the extinction of animals in islands[@louys2021No evidence for widespread island extinctions after Pleistocene hominin arrival]. The biggest problems is that more recent archaeological records have been extrapolated to justify that humans have always negatively impacted insular biotas. The overkill hypothesis may not be valid for pleistocene humans.

What is important to point out is that massive extinctions in islands have been driven during the holocene by the arrival of modern humans, with different technological advancements and societal organizations. For example, the introduction of other animals, hunting tools, or tools to clear larger areas of forest could have driven extinctions in relatively more recent times.

Pleistocene extinctions could have been driven by other processes, unrelated to the presence of humans.


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Aquiles Carattino
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