Sloth - Extinctions

Extinctions

Until geologically recent times, ground sloths such as Megatherium lived in South America and parts of North America, but along with many other animals they disappeared shortly after the arrival of humans on the continent. Much evidence suggests that human hunting contributed to the extinction of the American megafauna, like that of far northern Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and Madagascar. Simultaneous climate change that came with the end of the last Ice age may have also played a role in some cases. However, the fact that ground sloths survived on the Antilles long after they had died out on the mainland points toward human activities as the agency of extinction.