Cow could soon be largest land mammal left due to human activity – study

Researchers examining extinction of large mammals as humans spread across the world see worrying trend

The cow could be left as the biggest land mammal on Earth in a few centuries, according to a new study that examines the extinction of large mammals as humans spread around the world.

The spread of hominims - early humans and related species such as Neanderthals - from Africa thousands of years ago coincided with the extinction of megafauna such as the mammoth, the sabre-toothed tiger and the glyptodon, an armadillo-like creature the size of a car.