38 Replies to “It’s A Good Thing, Too”

  2. This isn’t new, seen the same claims with several other prehistoric animals. Some anthropologists know how to play the game. Publish a paper which makes a huge leap to the conclusion that humans caused the extinction of a prehistoric species, primarily because we just so happened to exist at the time of extinction, equals much publicity. Funny though how no evidence of human or neanderthal butcher or tool marks have ever been found on cave bear remains.
    I’ll need more proof before I believe this.

  3. ChrisinMB: Are you saying that I should not trust a scientific paper and that the author might be sensationalizing the issue? ;^)
    So I guess the working title “Pre-historic big headed bears: did they like honey?” wasn’t going to cut it.

  4. Some 10,000 years from now, skeletal remains of a now extinct bear-like creature have been discovered in a cave in northwestern Pakistan.
    Archaeologists surmise these apparently intra-specied, lanky, anti-social specimens dwelt exclusively underground, and have dubbed them Ursa bin Laden. They are extremely puzzled, however, in their DNA testing, of recurring goat markers.

  5. I remember years ago some fossil remains of an extinct giant beaver were discovered in the NWT. Some Aboriginal dude from the north was all agog about it, claiming that it was proof that his ancestors had been there since creation, seeing as how they had some legend about giant beavers that had been passed down from generation to generation. I wondered if the Peigan people in southern Alberta could claim the same about the Grandfather of the Buffalo legend (ie) dinosaur bones. Never mind that our human ancestors hadn’t even left Africa at that time.

  6. Cave bears were pretty impressive, but just not built to last. I watched a program on this last night on National Geog. channel. They were huge, long thin legs and a really powerful nose. They scavenged for dead carcasses, which is likely where early humans came into contact with them. They also ate plant material, much like today’s Grizzly. They used their size to scare off other scavengers, weren’t really built for fighting, just big and scary. Because of their long spindly legs they weren’t very good at hunting, couldn’t accelerate or make quick turns.
    In the end it seems they were too specialized in regards to diet and range, dead carcasses and high nutrient plants. Times were tough around the time of their extinction, and only the bears with the most versatile diets survived.

  8. Congratulations BTJ >
    You have just described the world of the leftist in one paragraph.
    I liked the vegetarian/ carcass scavenger part and not strong enough to survive bit the best.
    “big and scary” intinimidators that couldn’t fight. Marvelous.

  9. All those who believe humanity is an unnatural cancer to mother gaia and her species please raise your hand….great now please report to the suici…excuse me, redemption chambers.
    Problem solved.

  10. I do not want to start a “war” in this comment thread but…( I’ll be away for most of the day anyway )
    The Bear cranium looks exactly like a dinosaur cranium…
    evolution?…

  11. It took 15000 years to wipe them out? Humans must have been lazy socialists back then as well.

  12. ” I liked the vegetarian/ carcass scavenger part and not strong enough to survive bit the best.
    “big and scary” intinimidators that couldn’t fight. Marvelous.”
    Knight99:
    I’m flattered that you seem to have a hard-on for me…following me around like kid with his first crush.
    Please, inform me…what part was I mistaken about?

  13. Now all we have to do is kill off the rest of the bears and it will be much safer to go camping.
    Waiting for all Neo Commie responses.

  15. I remember a great Gary Larsen cartoon.
    Two huge paleolithic bears are outside their cave, swatting away a horde of cavemen (who armed with spears and attempting to hunt them).
    One bear says to the other, “Criminy! It seems like there are more of these things every summer!”

  17. This reminds me of Crocodile Dundee’s explanation of the aborigine’s concept of land ownership.
    “They look at it like 2 fleas arguing about who owns the dog.”
    Pretty much on the money. Yeah I know I have been places where humanity resembles an infestation but disease, earthquakes, famine, floods tsunamis are the control mechanism. Pakistan seems bent on control by other means.
    Despite the popular notion that cartridge rifles and government policy decimated the NA plains bison there is a great body of evidence that other natural factors were the major cause.
    The absence of tool makes on Cave Bear remnants pretty well eliminates a significant anthropogenic contribution.

  18. “The absence of tool makes on Cave Bear remnants pretty well eliminates a significant anthropogenic contribution.”
    Ya, only the most versatile bears made it to this age…the ones that could live on just about anything. Panda bears are an example, they survive on just about the poorest source of nutrition there is.

  20. sas:
    missed this:
    “Despite the popular notion that cartridge rifles and government policy decimated the NA plains bison there is a great body of evidence that other natural factors were the major cause.”
    BS, they were over hunted period. Unbacked statements are worthless. How some of you can sit there bashing researcher for their conclusions, which are backed by work and evidence, and then turn around and make random, unsupported claims baffles me. Hypocrisy is one of the most disgraceful of human behaviors.

  21. How impressive were our ancestors! Hunting down
    these beasties! Big, strong, cunning … and now
    the best we can do is have the local bits of fluff
    eaten by coyotes. How degrading.
    The sheer toughness necessary to do this only passed
    away a generation ago, too. Back in the early `60s
    Inuit hunters still hunted down polar bears.

  22. The epic poem “How Horatius Kept the Bridge” makes me wonder if the Etruscan hordes attacking Rome knew cave bears were already supposed to be extinct:
    All shrank, like boys who unaware,
    Ranging the woods to start a hare,
    Come to the mouth of the dark lair
    Where, growling low, a fierce old bear
    Lies amidst bones and blood.

  23. Overheard at a Cave Bear roast, some 20,000 years ago:
    “Mmmm. Tasty.”
    “Yep.”
    “Don’t see many of these things anymore.”
    “Yep. Damn good thing. Nasty bastards.”

  25. Suspect our ancestors ran for the hills when they saw one of those jobs. From Clark’s journal, May 1805: we Shot ten Balls into him before we killed him, & 5 of those Balls through his lights. “Him” was a grizzly bear. If they couldn’t bring them down with muskets and lead balls, I don’t think stone lobbing will get the job done.

  26. Re hunting polar bears. A friend of mine who spent years flying out of Yellowknife as a bush pilot told me this story. An old Inuit was telling him how they hunted polar bears by setting the dogs on them and when the dogs had them occupied they would get close enough to put the muzzle of their .303 against the bears head before they would shoot it, as that was the only way the gun was powerful enough to kill it. When he asked them if that wasn’t a bit dangerous, he was told that it beats poking them with a sharpened stick!!

  27. A little off topic but………it was a good thing we almost killed off the buffalo…..unless you don’t like to eat. N.America could not have become the huge bread basket it is today with 10 million buffalo wandering around going thru fences and eating crops. Lets face it except for parks, towns and indian reserves all of the great american plains is either in hay, crop, or cattle production. And those stupid buffalo would have been in the way.

  29. Cave bears might be a really good excuse to own a tastefully engraved double rifle in .600 Nitro Express.
    As for buffalo, there’s a guy down the road here that has a bunch on his front acreage. I’m lead to understand they are yummy. I’ll let you know if one wanders into my yard. ~:D

  30. “it was a good thing we almost killed off the buffalo…..unless you don’t like to eat. N.America could not have become the huge bread basket it is today with 10 million buffalo wandering around going thru fences and eating crops.”
    Sweet, we traded Buffalo steaks for high-fructose corn syrup. I’ll take the steak over the candy.

  33. whoa BTJ, you had them on the run until that last comment about Buffalo steaks vs. corn syrup. You might have gone too far with that one.

  35. Meh. I’ve had buffalo burgers and buffalo stew. Nothing special. In fact, rather too mild, if you ask me.
    No. You don’t want to be in front of a charging herd or even a singleton. Them’s big beasts. On the other hand, maybe we could start a Canadian version of the Spanish bullfight. That should be able to attract some tourists, not to mention assist Darwin in the improvement of our species.

  36. And speaking of “assisting Darwin in the improvement of our species”, I believe we have a candidate who has volunteered himself for natural selection.

  37. Louise
    “”” I believe we have a candidate who has volunteered himself for natural selection.”””
    you LEFT out whom that may be:-)))

  38. “Meh. I’ve had buffalo burgers and buffalo stew. Nothing special. In fact, rather too mild, if you ask me.”
    That’s odd, I’ve found it to be much more flavorful than beef. Also, being tougher works well in chili, makes for nicer texture than ground beef.

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