news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050817/sc_nm/usa_wild_dc
Reuters Elephants, lions to roam North America once more? Wed Aug 17, 1:03 PM ET LONDON (Reuters) - Scientists are proposing reintroducing large mammals s uch as elephants, lions, cheetahs and wild horses to North America to re place populations lost 13,000 years ago.
Click Here The scientists say that not only could large tracts of North America act as breeding sanctuaries for species of large wild animals under threat i n Africa and Asia, but that such ecological history parks could be major tourist attractions. "Africa and parts of Asia are now the only places where megafauna are rel atively intact, and the loss of many of these species within this centur y seems likely," the team, led by Josh Donlan from New York's Cornell Un iversity, said. "Given this risk of further extinction, re-wilding of North American site s carries global conservation implications," the team wrote in Wednesday 's issue of the science journal Nature. It said large mammals were common across all continents until the Late Pl eistocene wipeout that hit North America hardest and handed the world to smaller species. The largest mammals in the United States today are bis on. The Pleistocene epoch lasted from about 165 million years ago to 10,000 years ago. "Large carnivores and herbivores often play important roles in the mainte nance of biodiversity, and thus many extinct mammals must have shaped th e evolution of the species we know today," the scientists wrote. They said the pronghorn antelope's remarkable turn of speed must be due a t least in part to the presence of the now extinct predatory American ch eetah alongside it on North America's grasslands. Reintroducing the modern relatives of the Late Pleistocene losers to Nort h America could spark fresh interest in conservation, contribute to biod iversity and begin to put right some of the wrongs caused by human activ ities. "Establishing Asian asses and Przewalski's horse in North America might h elp prevent the extinction of these endangered species and would restore equid species to their evolutionary homeland," the scientists wrote. They proposed a second phase that would include reintroducing African che etahs, lions and Asian and African elephants to large private parks. "Free-roaming, managed cheetahs in the southwestern United States could s ave the fastest carnivore from extinction, restore what must have been s trong interactions with pronghorn and facilitate ecotourism as an altern ative for ranchers. "Managed elephant populations could similarly benefit ranchers through gr assland maintenance and ecotourism," they wrote, adding that reintroduci ng lions would represent the pinnacle of the Pleistocene re-wilding of N orth America. They admitted the plan would be controversial but said it was a far bette r option than simply accepting the terminal decline of some of the world 's most impressive species due to human encroachment and global warming. "Pleistocene re-wilding is an optimistic alternative," they wrote. "The o bstacles are substantial and the risks are not trivial, but we can no lo nger accept a hands-off approach to wilderness preservation."
Scientists are proposing reintroducing large mammals such as elephant s, lions, cheetahs and wild horses to North America to replace populatio ns lost 13,000 years ago. The scientists say that not only could large t racts of North America act as breeding sanctuaries for species of large wild animals under threat in Africa and Asia, but that such ecological h istory parks could be major tourist attractions. It said large mammals were common acr oss all continents until the Late Pleistocene wipeout that hit North Ame rica hardest and handed the world to smaller species. The largest mammal s in the United States today are bison. The Pleistocene epoch lasted fro m about 165 million years ago to 10,000 years ago. An elephant on the p lains of Masai Mara Game Park in Kenya, August 18, 2003.
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