How old people saved Komodo’s giant pigs and dragons from extinction

Ancient humans saved Komodo’s giant pigs and dragons from extinction, scientists at the Natural History Museum have discovered.

Researchers have long been searching for fossil evidence of our mysterious old cousins, the Denisovians, known mostly from traces of their DNA.

In analyzing where this was found, they have found that large animals that came with humans had a genetic advantage earlier than those that did not. Scientists believe this is because although our early ancestors learned to hunt, megafauna evolved into Komodo dragons for protective devices that helped them survive.

Parts of the world, such as Australia, where these ancient people were not thought to be, lost the megafauna when a modern man landed.

Professor Chris Stringer from the Natural History Museum said they had not found any fossils of the Denisovans in Australia – where megafauna became extinct – but some in other areas included islands Indonesia, Tibet and Siberia.

Large animals that survive today in these regions include the Komodo Dragon, the Babirusa (a pig with amazing tusks upside down), and the Tamaraw and Anoas (small wild buffalos).

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