Discussion of Pimm et al., 1994 (Bird Extinctions in the Central Pacific [and Discussion])

There is no doubt that Polynesian and European cultures caused numerous extinctions throughout the Pacific. However, I suggest caution against the conclusion that all human colonists or islands necessarily cause substantial extinctions of vertebrates. The first humans colonized Australia at least 60000 years ago. Their impact on the vertebrate assemblages of the great island continent is unclear, with little direct proof that they caused the demise of the marsupial megafauna. What is clear is that the Australian Aborigines caused fewer extinctions of vertebrates than occurred in the mid-Miocene, or which followed the arrival of Europeans. I suggest that some cultures cause extinctions, rather than the general idea that humans necessarily are destructive of biodiversity.