{"product_id":"end-of-the-megafauna-the-fate-of-the-worlds-hugest-fiercest-and-strangest-animals-9780393249293","title":"End of the Megafauna: The Fate of the World's Hugest, Fiercest, and Strangest Animals","description":"\u003cp\u003eUntil a few thousand years ago, creatures that could have been from a sci-fi thriller--including gorilla-sized lemurs, 500-pound birds, and crocodiles that weighed a ton or more--roamed the earth. These great beasts, or \"megafauna,\" lived on every habitable continent and on many islands. With a handful of exceptions, all are now gone.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhat caused the disappearance of these prehistoric behemoths? No one event can be pinpointed as a specific cause, but several factors may have played a role. Paleomammalogist Ross D. E. MacPhee explores them all, examining the leading extinction theories, weighing the evidence, and presenting his own conclusions. He shows how theories of human overhunting and catastrophic climate change fail to account for critical features of these extinctions, and how new thinking is needed to elucidate these mysterious losses.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAlong the way, we learn how time is determined in earth history; how DNA is used to explain the genomics and phylogenetic history of megafauna--and how synthetic biology and genetic engineering may be able to reintroduce these giants of the past. Until then, gorgeous four-color illustrations by Peter Schouten re-create these megabeasts here in vivid detail.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e W. W. Norton \u0026amp; Company\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 11\/13\/2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780393249293\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 256\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 2.30lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 10.20h x 8.20w x 0.90d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations: \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 11\/01\/2018 pg. 82\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 09\/01\/2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 09\/17\/2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 12\/01\/2018 pg. 16\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Ross D. E. MacPhee","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":36636863463580,"sku":"9780393249293","price":29.75,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_432a68a6-0419-4020-99a0-e83bdb70f1bc.jpg?v=1603843190","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/end-of-the-megafauna-the-fate-of-the-worlds-hugest-fiercest-and-strangest-animals-9780393249293","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}