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In Australia, megafauna included the huge wombat-shaped Diprotodon and giant goanna Megalania. Unlike European megafauna. The woolly rhinoceroses, mammoths, cave lions and cave bears. North American: giant ground sloths, glyptotheriums, and sabre-toothed tigers. And, African megafauna including elephants, giraffes, rhinoceroses and hippopotamuses.

What makes Australia’s megafauna so unique
At the end of the last ice age, Australia’s climate changed from cold-dry to warm-dry. As a result, surface water became scarce. Most inland lakes became completely dry or dry in the warmer seasons. Most large, predominantly browsing animals lost their habitat and retreated to a narrow band in eastern Australia. Where there was permanent water and better vegetation.

In both Eurasia and North America, megafauna extinction concluded simultaneously with the replacement of the vast periglacial tundra by an immense area of forest

As First Nations people have been in Australia over the past 60 000 years, megafauna must have co-existed with them at least 30,000 years
For social, spiritual and economic reasons. It is believed first Nations peoples harvested game in a sustainable manner.

Notable examples of Australian megafauna include:

Diprotodon – The largest known marsupial, similar in appearance to a giant wombat, but much larger, weighing up to 2,800 kg (6,200 lbs).

Megalania – A giant monitor lizard, estimated to have been around 5 to 7 meters (16 to 23 feet) long.

Procoptodon – A giant short-faced kangaroo that stood up to 2 meters (6.6 feet) tall. And, as large as 500lbs.

Thylacoleo – Also known as the marsupial lion, it was a carnivorous marsupial with powerful jaws and large, sharp claws.

Genyornis – A large, flightless bird that stood about 2 meters (6.6 feet) tall.

Quinkana – A large terrestrial crocodile that could grow up to 7 meters (23 feet) in length.

Likely due to a combination of climate change and human activity, such as hunting and habitat modification. These animals became extinct.

Key factors (2) include:

During this period, Australia experienced significant climatic shifts
Including increased aridity and changes in vegetation. These environmental changes would have affected the availability of food and water resources for the megafauna.

The arrival of humans is considered a major factor
Human activities such as habitat modification through the use of fire, and competition for resources. Likely played a crucial role.

Extinctions were likely the result of a combination of climatic and human pressures
It is still debated today.

The extinction of Australian megafauna species drastically altered Australia’s ecosystem and the biodiversity of the continent.

Bibliography: Roberts, R. G.; Flannery, T. F.; Ayliffe, L. K.; Yoshida, H.; Olley, J. M.; Prideaux, G. J.; Laslett, G. M.; Baynes, A.; Smith, M. A.; Jones, R.; Smith, B. L. (8 June 2001). “New Ages for the Last Australian Megafauna: Continent-Wide Extinction About 46,000 Years Ago” (http://www.uow.edu.au/content/groups/public/@web/@sci/@eesc/documents/doc/uow014698.pdf) (PDF). Science. 292 (#5523): 1888–1892. Bibcode:2001Sci…292.1888R (https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2001Sci…292.1888R). doi:10.1126/science.1060264 (https://doi.org/10.1126%2Fscience.1060264). PMID 11397939 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11397939). S2CID 45643228 (https:/api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:45643228)

Miller, G. H. (2005). “Ecosystem Collapse in Pleistocene Australia and a Human Role in Megafaunal Extinction” (http://doc.rero.ch/record/14709/files/PAL_E1537.pdf) (PDF). Science. 309 (#5732): 287–290. Bibcode:2005Sci…309..287M (https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2005S ci…309..287M). doi:10.1126/science.1111288 (https://doi.org/10.1126%2Fscience.1111288). PMID 16002615 (https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:22761857).