Woolly mammoths would still be abundant in Europe without humans, the study found
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If there were no people in Europe, large animals such as mammoths and cave bears would be thriving there in even greater numbers today than 120,000 years ago.
That is the conclusion of a modelling study based on fossil and climate data. It also shows that the loss of megafauna has had a massive effect on Europe’s ecosystems.
Many of the really large animals around the world, from the giant sloth of South America to Haast’s eagle …
