Real History: New dates suggest Oceania's megafauna lived until 25,000 years ago, implying coexistence with people for 40,000 years

For most of Australia's human past sea levels were lower than they are today. Australia's mainland was connected to Papua New Guinea and Tasmania as part of a larger landmass called "Sahul". 

During the Ice Ages Sahul was home to a unique range of megafauna, which included giant marsupials, birds and reptiles. The extinction of megafauna in Sahul remains one of the most contested debates in Australian science.

Now, our new paper published in Archaeology in Oceania provides compelling evidence megafauna may have coexisted with people in the region longer than previously thought—and as recently as about 25,000 years ago. 

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New dates suggest Oceania's megafauna lived until 25,000 years ago, implying coexistence with people for 40,000 years