Wet is deadly, new extinction study says

CANBERRA - Australian-led research has found that major increases in environmental moisture occurred just before mass extinctions of large or giant animal species around 11,000-15,000 years ago.

According to the University of Adelaide's Australian Center for Ancient DNA, persistent moisture - which was caused by melting permafrost at the end of the last ice age - contributed to grasslands becoming boggy peatlands.

Using more than 500 radiocarbon-dated bones from animals such as bison, horses and llamas, the team was able to uncover the role that environment moisture played in the extinction of larger than human animals scientists describe as "megafaunal".