What major environmental change is cited as the reason for the decline of giant wombats?
Answer
Climate shifts at the end of the Pleistocene
The evolutionary bottleneck that dramatically reduced the population of giant wombats and led to the survival of the smaller modern forms is attributed primarily to the significant climate shifts that occurred toward the conclusion of the Pleistocene epoch. These environmental changes resulted in a decrease in the availability of necessary resources, potentially including the specialized megaflora upon which the massive herbivores depended. The giants, perhaps specialized for these former conditions, could not adapt to the leaner resources, whereas the smaller, more flexible modern wombats possessed the adaptability needed to survive this environmental transition.
Related Questions
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