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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

Insights into Holocene megafauna survival and extinction in southeastern Brazil from new AMS C-14 dates

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Author(s):
Hubbe, Alex [1, 2] ; Hubbe, Mark [3, 4] ; Karmann, Ivo [5] ; Cruz, Francisco W. [5] ; Neves, Walter A. [2]
Total Authors: 5
Affiliation:
[1] Inst Carste, BR-30360260 Belo Horizonte, MG - Brazil
[2] Univ Sao Paulo, Lab Estudos Evolut Humanos, Dept Genet & Biol Evolut, Inst Biociencias, BR-05508090 Sao Paulo - Brazil
[3] Ohio State Univ, Dept Anthropol, Columbus, OH 43210 - USA
[4] Univ Catolica Norte, Inst Invest Arqueol & Museo, San Pedro De Atacama 1410000 - Chile
[5] Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Geol Sedimentar, Inst Geociencias, BR-05508900 Sao Paulo - Brazil
Total Affiliations: 5
Document type: Journal article
Source: Quaternary Research; v. 79, n. 2, p. 152-157, MAR 2013.
Web of Science Citations: 7
Abstract

The extinction of late Quaternary megafauna in South America has been extensively debated in past decades. The majority of the hypotheses explaining this phenomenon argue that the extinction was the result of human activities, environmental changes, or even synergism between the two. Although still limited, a good chronological framework is imperative to discuss the plausibility of the available hypotheses. Here we present six new direct AMS C-14 radiocarbon dates from the state of Sao Paulo (Brazil) to further characterize the chronological distribution of extinct fauna in this part of South America. The new dates make evident that ground sloths, toxodonts, and saber-toothed cats lived in the region around the Pleistocene/Holocene transition, and, in agreement with previous studies, also suggest an early Holocene survival for the ground sloth Catonyx cuvieri. Taken together with local paleoclimatic and archaeological data, the new dates do not support hunting or indirect human activities as a major cause for megafauna extinction. Although more data are required, parsimony suggests that climatic changes played a major role in this extinction event. (c) 2012 University of Washington. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. (AU)