The Aftermath of Megafaunal Extinction: Ecosystem Transformation in Pleistocene Australia

@article{Rule2012TheAO,
  title={The Aftermath of Megafaunal Extinction: Ecosystem Transformation in Pleistocene Australia},
  author={Susan Rule and Barry W. Brook and Simon G. Haberle and Chris S. M. Turney and A. Peter Kershaw and Christopher N. Johnson},
  journal={Science},
  year={2012},
  volume={335},
  pages={1483 - 1486}
}
Human Impact? Following the arrival of humans in Australia 40- to 50,000 years ago, many species of large vertebrates rapidly became extinct. By analyzing sediment cores from a site in northeastern Australia, Rule et al. (p. 1483; see the Perspective by McGlone) show that the extinction of the Australian megafauna caused important ecosystem shifts. Prominent among these were a shift from rainforest vegetation to sclerophyllous vegetation and a sustained increase in the incidence of fire. The… Expand
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Ecological impacts of the late Quaternary megaherbivore extinctions.
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  • Biology, Medicine
  • The New phytologist
  • 2014
TLDR
A growing number of studies support the hypothesis that the loss of the Pleistocene megafauna resulted in cascading effects on plant community composition, vegetation structure and ecosystem function, including increased fire activity, novel communities and shifts in biomes. Expand
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