Reign Of Papua New Guinea’s Megafauna Lasted Long After Humans Arrived

Illustration of PNG megafauna Hulitherium, Thylacine, Protemnodon, Tree Kangaroo, Bulmer’s Flying Fox and Bruijn’s Long-beaked Echidna (left to right) species: Hulitherium thomasetti, Thlacinus sp. cf. T. cynocephalus, Protemnodon nombe, Protemnodon tumbuna, Dendrolagus noibano, Aproteles bumerae (extant), Zaglossus bruijni (extant) in New Guinea, Upper Montane forest. Credit: Peter Schouten (End of the Megafauna)

A giant kangaroo that once roamed on four legs through remote forests in the Papua New Guinea Highlands may have survived as recently as 20,000 years ago—long after large-bodied megafauna on mainland Australia went extinct, new research indicates.

The fresh analysis produced revised ages of the bones and suggests that several large mammal species, including the extinct thylacine and a panda-like marsupial (called Hulitherium tomasettii) still lived in the PNG Highlands when people first arrived, possibly around 60,000 years ago.

Remarkably, two large extinct kangaroo species, including one that bounded on four legs rather than hopping on two legs, may have persisted in the region for another 40,000 years.

Read more here

www.messagetoeagle.com - best news from the past, present and future

Source: https://www.messagetoeagle.com/reign-of-papua-new-guineas-megafauna-lasted-long-after-humans-arrived/