Re: endurance running & large brains

"Michael Hearne" <here@xxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:sio_f.2559$sq5.958@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It should also be considered that large quantities of meat would spoil,
unless jerked, and so they may have just been hunting day by day. Also,
it would have been dangerous to hunt certain horned and tusked animals
without help.

The Aurochs was nothing like a domestic cow, and was more of a threat to
man than man was to him.

Agreed. Insofar as hominids/humans did hunt
large animals they used their distinctive attributes:
their brains, and ability to use tools. They would
have set snares, traps, or used poisoned arrows,
or the like. The last thing they would do is run
after them.

The same goes for the rhinos, mammoths, cats,
bears and all the other large mammals that we supposedly caused to
become extinct. I believe there were other factors involved, such as
loss of habitat, and climatic change.

Since those species had been in existence for
a few million years, they would have survived
numerous losses of habitat, and changes in
climate. Humans must have been guilty. The
expansion of a new tribe, with new technology
could have suddenly changed a harmless
biped into a dangerous predator, leaving no
time for the prey species to adapt.

Carnivores (such as the sabre-tooth) probably
had some vulnerability of which we are now
unaware. Maybe their cubs could relatively
easily be found and killed by an intelligent
species, following a deliberate policy of
suppressing dangerous carnivores.

I've often wondered what does cause the "end of the line" in a species?
Does it evolve into something else, or does it's process simply end and
come to a climax?

It never evolves into something else --
although, in fact, myths like this are
commonly believed by both professionals
and amateurs.


Paul.




.

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