It said large mammals were common across all continents until the Late Pleistocene wipeout that hit North America hardest and handed the world to smaller species. The largest mammals in the United States today are bison.
The Pleistocene epoch lasted from about 1.65 million years ago to 10,000 years ago.
"Large carnivores and herbivores often play important roles in the maintenance of biodiversity, and thus many extinct mammals must have shaped the evolution of the species we know today," the scientists wrote.
They said the pronghorn antelope's remarkable turn of speed must be due at least in part to the presence of the now extinct predatory American cheetah alongside it on North America's grasslands.
Reintroducing the modern relatives of the Late Pleistocene losers to North America could spark fresh interest in conservation, contribute to biodiversity and begin to put right some of the wrongs caused by human activities.
"Establishing Asian asses and Przewalski's horse in North America might help 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 cheetahs, lions and Asian and African elephants to large private parks.
Hell, why stop at the Pleistocene? Let's get us some sabre-tooth, , Neandertal, and Cave Bear DNA and repopulate them, too? Or better yet, use our Dinosaur DNA to create our very own version of Jurassic Park?
I mean, really. You think the deer problem is bad, wait until you hit an elephant on the highway. Talk about messy.
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