The Pleistocene Overkill Hypothesis

The Pleistocene Overkill Hypothesis suggests that early humans contributed to the extinction of many large Ice Age animals, like mammoths and saber-toothed cats. As humans expanded across the globe, their hunting intensified, possibly leading to the rapid decline of these megafauna about 10,000 years ago. This theory proposes that human hunting, combined with environmental changes, played a significant role in the sudden disappearance of these species, shaping the ecosystems we see today.