New Research Challenges Theory on Indigenous Australians' Role in Megafauna Extinction

A team of researchers led by Professor Mike Archer from the University of New South Wales has shed new light on the long-debated theory of Indigenous Australians' role in the extinction of Australia's megafauna, a group of enormous marsupials, massive flightless birds, and giant reptiles that roamed the continent during the Pleistocene era, around 65,000 years ago. By employing cutting-edge technology, including high-tech 3D scanning and radiometric dating, the researchers have discovered that the incision marks on the fossilized bone of an ancient kangaroo were made after the bone had dried out and developed shrinkage cracks, indicating that it was likely already fossilized when the incision occurred.

Key Takeaways:

• The researchers found that the incision marks on the fossilized bone of an ancient kangaroo were made after the bone had dried out and had developed shrinkage cracks, contradicting the earlier theory that Indigenous Australians hunted and killed the megafauna.
• The team used 3D-scanning (microCT) technology to look inside the bone without damaging it, as well as radiometric dating to determine the age of the bone and the cut.
• Additional research by the team found that a fossil tooth 'charm' from the Worora Nations man, likely carried or traded across vast distances, suggests a cultural appreciation or symbolic use of fossils by Indigenous Australians long before European science did.
• The researchers do not completely rule out the possibility that Indigenous Australians hunted megafauna, but argue that hard evidence is needed to confirm this theory.
• The study's findings have significant implications for our understanding of the relationship between Indigenous Australians and Australia's prehistoric megafauna, and highlight the need for further research into other important sites like Cuddie Springs in NSW.

Statistics:

• The incision marks on the kangaroo bone were made 65,000 years after the animal's extinction.
• The bone was radiometrically dated to around 25,000 years old, contradicting the earlier theory that it was much younger.
• The fossil tooth 'charm' found in the Kimberley region is estimated to be around 20-30,000 years old.
• Around 65,000 years ago, Indigenous Australians coexisted with megafauna species for thousands of years.

Sources:

• University of New South Wales
• Royal Society Open Science, an open-access journal
• Western Australian Museum
• Kim Akerman, a renowned archaeologist
• Professor Mike Archer's original study published in 1980