Not all sloths were fuzzy, slow-moving creatures that lived in trees. They had enormous claws to defend themselves when they were frightened, and their prehistoric forebears weighed up to 4 tons (3.6 metric tons).
Scientists long thought that these enormous ground sloths, along with many other large animals like mastodons, saber-toothed tigers, and dire wolves that once roamed North and South America, were hunted down by the first people to arrive in the Americas.
New research from a variety of sources, however, indicates that humans may have reached the Americas far earlier than previously thought. These discoveries imply that these early Americans led a radically different existence, maybe coexisting with enormous animals for millennia on prehistoric savannas and marshes.
Pleistocene overkill is the term used to describe the theory that humans soon wiped out everything after arriving, according to archeologist Daniel Odess of White Sands National Park in New Mexico. New findings, however, show that these species were coexisting with humans for at least 10,000 years without going extinct.
Huge ground sloth bones from the Santa Elina archaeological site in central Brazil, which exhibits evidence of human modification, contain some of the most intriguing discoveries. These kinds of sloths used to travel from Alaska to Argentina, and some of them had osteoderms, which are bone formations on their backs that resembled the plates on modern armadillos and might have been used as decorations.
A circular, penny-sized sloth fossil is held by researcher Marian Pacheco at a lab at the University of Sao Paulo. She notes that there is a little hole close to one side, the surface is remarkably smooth, and the edges appear to have been deliberately polished.
She told us, “We think it was purposefully changed and used by ancient people as jewelry or adornment.” Unworked osteoderms on a table, which have rough surfaces and no perforations, can be easily distinguished from three identical pendant fossils.
At over 27,000 years old, these Santa Elina artifacts predate the arrival of humans in the Americas by about 10,000 years, according to scientists.
At first, researchers questioned whether the artisans were dealing with ancient fossils. Pacheco’s research, however, clearly demonstrates that ancient people cut new bones shortly after the animals passed away.
The tale of how humans first arrived in the Americas and their effects on the ecosystem they found may be altered by her findings and other recent discoveries.
Pacheco said that there is still a lot of disagreement.
According to scientists, humans initially arose in Africa, then moved to Europe and Asia-Pacific, and then reached the Americas, the final continental frontier. The final chapter of the tale of human origins is still unclear, though.
In high school, Pacheco was taught the viewpoint that the majority of twentieth-century archaeologists held. She informed me that Clovis was the first, as I had learnt in school.
Archaeologists have found distinctive projectile points and other artifacts from 11,000 to 13,000 years ago at Clovis in New Mexico.
The chance that early humans arrived in North America after crossing the Bering land bridge from Asia is increased by the fact that this date falls at the conclusion of the last Ice Age, when an ice-free corridor is believed to have formed in the continent.
Furthermore, many scholars came to the conclusion that human presence caused mass extinctions since the fossil record indicates that the fall of American megafauna started about the same time as South America lost more than 80% of its enormous mammals and North America lost 70%.
When the timing was right, it was a good tale for a while, according to paleoanthropologist Briana Pobiner of the Human Origins Program at the Smithsonian Institution. However, it no longer functions as effectively.
The old narrative has been upended and new questions, particularly regarding timing, have been raised over the past 30 years by new research methods, such as ancient DNA analysis and new laboratory techniques, as well as by the examination of more archaeological sites and the participation of more diverse scholars from across the Americas.
Richard Fari, a paleontologist at the University of the Republic in Montevideo, Uruguay, stated that anything older than roughly 15,000 years is still subject to close examination. However, increasingly strong evidence from earlier sites continues to surface.
Pacheco investigates the chemical alterations that take place when a bone turns into a fossil in Sao Paulo and at the Federal University of Sao Carlos. This makes it possible for her team to determine when the sloth osteoderms were most likely altered.
We discovered that the osteoderms were carved in fresh bones prior to the fossilization process, which suggests that the sloths perished a few days to a few years later, but not thousands of years later.
Additionally, her team analyzed and ruled out a number of natural processes, such as animal chewing and erosion. The study was released in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B journal last year.
Paleontologist Tha s Pansani, who was recently stationed at the Smithsonian Institution, is one of her partners. He is examining whether the sloth bones discovered at Santa Elina were burnt by man-made fires, which burn at a different temperature than natural wildfires.
It’s unclear from her initial findings if the fresh sloth bones were burned intentionally during cooking or were just close to human campsites. In order to rule out other potential explanations for the black spots, like natural chemical discoloration, she is also conducting tests.
Monte Verde, Chile, was the first location generally acknowledged to be older than Clovis.
Researchers have found fragments of preserved animal hides, a variety of edible and medicinal plants, and 14,500-year-old stone tools buried beneath a peat bog.
The surprise was Monte Verde. Archaeologist Tom Dillehay of Vanderbilt University, a longstanding researcher at Monte Verde, stated, “You’re here at the end of the world, with all this organic stuff preserved.”
Even earlier dates for human presence in the Americas are suggested by other archeological sites.
One of the oldest is Arroyo del Vizca in Uruguay, where scientists are examining cut markings on animal bones that appear to have been produced by humans around 30,000 years ago.
Researchers have discovered human footprints at New Mexico’s White Sands that date from between 21,000 and 23,000 years ago, along with enormous mammal footprints of a similar age. However, other archaeologists claim that it is difficult to comprehend how people could frequently visit a location and not leave behind any stone implements.
“They’ve presented a compelling argument, but I’m still confused about a few aspects of that site,” Southern Methodist University archaeologist David Meltzer said. Why would people never leave any artifacts but leave footprints over a long time?
According to Odess at White Sands, he anticipates and enjoys these kinds of obstacles. He stated, “We really just followed the evidence where it leads; we didn’t set out to find the oldest anything.”
Although the precise date of human arrival in the Americas is still up for debate and may never be established, it is obvious that if early humans arrived, they did not immediately annihilate the enormous animals they came across.
Additionally, some of their first exchanges are preserved in the White Sands footprints.
According to Odess’ interpretation, one set of tracks depicts a big ground sloth moving on four feet after coming across the footprints of a small person who has just sprinted past. After halting and standing up on its hind legs, the massive beast shuffles around before continuing on in a different direction.
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Eliot Pierce is a dedicated writer for ChiefsFocus.com, covering local crime and finance news. With a keen eye for detail and a passion for storytelling, Eliot aims to provide his readers with clear and insightful analysis, helping them navigate the complexities of their financial lives while staying informed about important local events. His commitment to delivering accurate and engaging content makes him a valuable resource for the community.