eFinder

eFinder

Home › Ecosystem Dynamics › Article

How giants that vanished 10,000 years ago triggered ripple effects that are still felt today

Phys · · 751 words · By Michigan State University
Ecosystem Dynamics Paleontological Science/Extinction Events

A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences analyzed how the disappearance of large mammals 10,000 years ago fundamentally reshaped global food webs. Researchers found that the severity of past extinctions, particularly in the Americas, played a significant role in the current structure of mammal food webs. The findings suggest that studying historical extinctions can help scientists predict potential long-term impacts on today's vulnerable wildlife populations.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://phys.org/news/2026-04-giants-years-triggered-ripple-effects.html

analyticsAnalysis

10%
Propaganda Score
confidence: 95%
Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

psychologyDetected Techniques

warning
Loaded Language 40% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

fact_checkFact-Check Results

12 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

check_circle Corroborated 4
info Single Source 4
help Insufficient Evidence 2
schedule Pending 2
check_circle
“Between 50,000 and 10,000 years ago, many of the world's largest mammals disappeared.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results explicitly state that many of the world's largest mammals disappeared between 50,000 and 10,000 years ago. One source directly quotes this timeframe and event.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Many (/ˈmɛni/) may refer to: grammatically plural in number an English quantifier used with count nouns indicating a large but indefinite number of; at any rate, more than a few Place names Many, Mos…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Many
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Many-to-many communication occurs when information is shared between groups. Members of a group receive information from multiple senders. Wikis are a type of many-to-many communication, where multipl…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Many-to-many
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Will of the Many is an epic fantasy novel written by Australian author James Islington and published by Saga Press in 2023. It is the first book in The Hierarchy series, with a second book, The St…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Will_of_the_Many
+ 3 more evidence sources
check_circle
“A new study reveals how their disappearance fundamentally reshaped food webs for the species that remain today, and why the changes were more pronounced in some parts of the world than others, particularly in the Americas.”
CORROBORATED
Two separate web search results report that a new study reveals how the disappearance of large mammals fundamentally reshaped food webs for remaining species, and that these changes were more pronounced in the Americas. This is reported by multiple search snippets.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — A new study reveals how their disappearance fundamentally reshaped food webs for the species that remain today, and why the changes were more pronounced in some parts of the world than others, particu…
https://eeb.msu.edu/news/giants-that-vanished-years-ago-trig…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — A new study reveals how their disappearance fundamentally reshaped food webs for the species that remain today, and why the changes were more pronounced in some parts of the world than others ...
https://phys.org/news/2026-04-giants-years-triggered-ripple-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Many of the world's largest mammals — also including woolly mammoths plus giant sloths and wombats — became extinct between 50,000 and 10,000 years ago. A new study reveals how their disappearance "fu…
https://www.news-expressky.com/news/national/why-the-america…
info
“The results appear in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The evidence provided for this claim consists only of general Wikipedia pages for 'National Academy of Sciences' and 'Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America,' which confirm the journal's existence and nature, but none of the search results or cross-references confirm that *this specific study* was published there. Therefore, the claim cannot be corroborated.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Ac…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Academy_of_Sciences
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (often abbreviated PNAS or PNAS USA) is a peer-reviewed multidisciplinary scientific journal. It is the official journal…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proceedings_of_the_National_Ac…
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Proceedings of the USSR Academy of Sciences (Russian: Доклады Академии Наук СССР, Doklady Akademii Nauk SSSR (DAN SSSR), French: Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences de l'URSS [kɔ̃t ʁɑ̃dy də …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proceedings_of_the_USSR_Academ…
+ 3 more evidence sources
check_circle
“When predators disappear, their prey can multiply unchecked, causing a series of cascading effects, said senior author Lydia Beaudrot, an assistant professor of integrative biology and member of the Ecology, Evolution & Behavior program at Michigan State University.”
CORROBORATED
The concept that removing predators has wide-ranging, cascading effects is supported by multiple web search results discussing trophic cascades and the removal of apex predators, which aligns with the claim's core message.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — But whatever their cause, the new study confirms that their disappearance has had long-lasting consequences. What it means for today's wildlife. The research is important because it helps scientists u…
https://phys.org/news/2026-04-giants-years-triggered-ripple-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Domino Effect of Trophic Cascades (Image Credits: Flickr). When you remove an apex predator from its ecosystem, you’re essentially pulling out a keystone that holds an entire arch together. Such w…
https://discoverwildscience.com/what-happens-when-apex-preda…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Predators, through their influence on prey populations, can indirectly affect nutrient cycles. For example, reduced grazing pressure can lead to increased plant growth, which, in turn, can impact soil…
https://enviroliteracy.org/what-would-happen-if-there-is-a-s…
check_circle
“For the new study, a team led by Beaudrot and first author Chia Hsieh analyzed recent data on predator-prey relationships at 389 sites across tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas, Africa and Asia.”
CORROBORATED
Two web search results confirm that a team led by Beaudrot analyzed predator-prey relationships in 389 locations across the Americas, Africa, and Asia, and that Chia Hsieh was involved in the research.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — To investigate this hunch, Beaudrot and her team analyzed the predator-prey relationships in 389 locations across tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas, Africa, and Asia. Their study includ…
https://www.popsci.com/environment/woolly-mammoth-extinction…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Chia Hsieh Chia HsiehPresidential Postdoctoral Fellow of Ecology, Evolution, Behavior Program, Michigan State UniversityVerified email at msu.edu.C Knott, L Beaudrot, T Snaith, S White, H Tschauner, G…
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=L-07qlIAAAAJ&hl=en
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Lydia Beaudrot. Food webs influence ecosystem diversity and functioning. Contemporary defaunation has reduced food web complexity, but simplification caused by past defaunation is difficult to reconst…
https://www.researchgate.net/scientific-contributions/Chia-H…
info
“The study included more than 440 species of mammals, including bears, wolves, elephants and lions.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The web search result mentioning the study includes the figure of 'over 440 mammals including lions, wolves, bears.' While the number is present, the other evidence provided for this claim is irrelevant (Study.com, Wikipedia entries for '440'), and there is no corroboration from other independent sources to confirm the exact species count or the inclusion of these specific animals.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Year 440 (CDXL) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Valentinianus and Anatolius (or, less frequently, year 1193 Ab urb…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/440
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 440-yard dash, or quarter-mile race, is an obsolete sprint race in track and field competitions. In many countries, athletes competed in the 440 yard dash (402.336 m) – which corresponds to a quar…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/440-yard_dash
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — A440 or A-440 may refer to: A440 (pitch standard) A440 highway (Australia), a road in Victoria, Australia Quebec Autoroute 440 (Laval) Quebec Autoroute 440 (Quebec City)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A440
+ 3 more evidence sources
info
“Overall, they found that food webs today have fewer, smaller prey in the Americas than in Africa and Asia.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The web search result discussing the study's findings states that modern food webs show fewer and smaller prey in the Americas compared to Africa and Asia. This specific comparative finding is only mentioned in the context of the study's results within the search snippets, and no other independent sources corroborate this specific comparison.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Determining the boundaries between the continents is generally a matter of geographical convention and consensus. Several slightly different conventions are in use. The number of continents is most c…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boundaries_between_the_contine…
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The political history of the world is the history of the various political entities created by the human race throughout their existence and the way these states define their borders. Throughout histo…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_history_of_the_world
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The recent African origin of modern humans or the "Out of Africa" theory (OOA) holds that present-day humans outside Africa descend mainly from a single expansion of anatomically modern humans (Homo s…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recent_African_origin_of_moder…
+ 3 more evidence sources
info
“And when they looked at prey characteristics such as body mass and activity patterns, they found that predators in the Americas stuck to prey with a narrower range of traits, with less overlap among them.”
SINGLE SOURCE
One web search result mentions that predator selection by pumas was correlated with an overlap of activity patterns. While this speaks to trait overlap, the claim's specific assertion—that predators in the Americas *tend* to rely on prey with a narrower range of traits and less overlap compared to other regions—is only presented in this single search result and lacks corroboration.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — To investigate this hunch, Beaudrot and her team analyzed the predator-prey relationships in 389 locations across tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas, Africa, and Asia. Their study includ…
https://www.popsci.com/environment/woolly-mammoth-extinction…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — We found ten prey species consumed by pumas, with the collared peccary (Pecari tajacu) representing almost half of consumed prey items. Prey selection by puma was correlated with an overlap of activit…
https://www.academia.edu/68112215/Deforestation_leads_to_pre…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — In the recent past, these predators often lived side by side, but excessive hunting and environmental changes by humans have drastically reduced their ranges. It is also known that in the Indian Gir F…
https://newsukraine.rbc.ua/news/stronger-than-lion-top-7-mos…
help
“Rather, they found that differences in the severity of past extinctions played a significant role [in regional differences in food webs].”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
Although the claim summarizes a potential conclusion regarding the role of past extinction severity, no evidence was gathered from the search or reference materials to support or refute this specific statement.
help
“But the Americas got hit the hardest, losing more than three-quarters of all mammals over 100 pounds during the last 50,000 years.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the gathered search results or reference materials to confirm the specific statistic that the Americas lost over three-quarters of all mammals weighing more than 100 pounds during the last 50,000 years.
schedule
“Around the planet, nearly half of all mammals weighing more than 20 pounds are considered vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).”
PENDING
schedule
“Chia Hsieh, et al. Historical legacies shape continental variation in contemporary mammal food webs, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2026). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2519938123”
PENDING
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.