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Science 15 November 1974:
Vol. 186. no. 4164, pp. 638 - 640
DOI: 10.1126/science.186.4164.638
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Articles

Death of American Ground Sloths

Austin Long 1 and Paul S. Martin 2

1 Laboratory of Isotope Geochemistry, Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, Tucson 85721
2 Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona

Organic remains, especially dung, of extinct ground sloths provide ideal material for radiocarbon dating. Rampart Cave, Arizona, revealed periodic occupation at intervals by the Shasta ground sloth from before 40,000 years ago until 11,000 years ago. Dates from other caves in the arid Southwest indicate that the Shasta ground sloth disappeared at very soon after the time of Clovis big game hunters. Ground sloth remains in South America are slightly younger. The timing of ground sloth extinction is in accord with the model of explosive overkill.


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Asynchronous extinction of late Quaternary sloths on continents and islands.
D. W. Steadman, P. S. Martin, R. D. E. MacPhee, A. J. T. Jull, H. G. McDonald, C. A. Woods, M. Iturralde-Vinent, and G. W. L. Hodgins (2005)
PNAS 102, 11763-11768
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Molecular Coproscopy: Dung and Diet of the Extinct Ground Sloth Nothrotheriops shastensis.
H. N. Poinar, M. Hofreiter, W. G. Spaulding, P. S. Martin, B. A. Stankiewicz, H. Bland, R. P. Evershed, G. Possnert, and S. Pääbo (1998)
Science 281, 402-406
   Abstract »    Full Text »
Pleistocene Avifaunas and the Overkill Hypothesis.
D. K. Grayson and D. K. GRAYSON (1977)
Science 195, 691-693
   Abstract »    PDF »


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