SYDNEY, April 24 (Xinhua) -- Ancient giant kangaroos, once roaming the rainforests of central Queensland of Australia, were surprisingly stay-at-home creatures, and that reluctance to roam may have led to their extinction, a study led by researchers from Australia's University of Wollongong (UOW) showed on Thursday.
Extinct giant kangaroos from Queensland were far from nomadic, preferring to stay within small home ranges, a behavior that may have hastened their extinction during a period of dramatic climate change, according to the study, done in collaboration with experts from Queensland Museum and the University of Adelaide.
The study used cutting-edge isotopic analysis to uncover details of the species Protemnodon, the scientific name for the giant prehistoric kangaroos.
Fossils from Mt. Etna Caves in central Queensland showed that these 170 kg marsupials rarely strayed from their local habitat, said the study published in PLOS One.
By analyzing strontium isotopes in fossilized teeth, the team matched the chemical signatures exclusively to nearby limestone, indicating that the kangaroos foraged only in that area, despite their large size, which would typically suggest broader movement, according to UOW researcher Christopher Laurikainen Gaete.
Researchers were surprised to find their home ranges were no larger than those of modern, much smaller kangaroo species.
These rainforest-dwelling megafauna thrived around 280,000 to 500,000 years ago but struggled when the climate turned drier and rainforests began to vanish, it said, adding their limited mobility left them unable to adapt or relocate, leading to local extinction.
"These new isotopic techniques have blown our field right open. Imagine ancient GPS trackers, we can use the fossils to track individuals, where they moved, what they ate, who they lived with and how they died," said Scott Hocknull, senior scientist and curator at Queensland Museum. ■
