Humans arrived in the Kaliko Islands about 7 000 years ago and within 3 000 years most of the large mammal species that had lived in the forests of the Kaliko Islands were extinct Previous archaeological findings have suggested that early humans generally

In the preceding statement, the author claims that humans were the cause of the extinction of many mammal species in the Kaliko Islands. While it may be true that excessive hunting could have decreased the number of mammals in the islands, the author presents a poorly reasoned argument, based on several questionable premises and assumptions. Therefore, based solely on the evidence the author offers, we cannot accept this argument as valid.

The primary issue with the author’s reasoning lies in his unsubstantiated premise. The these defended is that humans were the main reason for the extinction of other mammals in the islands and it is based on the tools found, which are considered to have been used for hunting. It is not clear, however, the validity of this point. The tools discovered could have helped humans hunt, but it seems unreasonable to think that early humans could have had such huge impact on their surroundings, up to the point of making a entire specie disappear. In three thousand years many natural disaster could have taken place, like a fire in the forest and the consequent kill of the mammals living there. It is not accurate to base the argument entirely on the idea that early humans were hunters. Therefore, the author’s premise, the basis for his argument, lack substantial support and render his conclusion unacceptable.

In addition, the author makes several assumptions that remain unproven. He presumes that humans based their diet on mammals because fish bones were discarded by new archaeological findings. What if the early humans in Kaliko Islands preferred seafood? This would connote that they fished more than hunted and thus they would not have been able to harm the mammal species. Besides, it is more plausible for people living in an island to obtain their food from the sea since it requires less effort. For this reason, the assumption made weakens the author’s argument since it has no evidence.

Nevertheless, while the author does have several key issues in his argument’s premise and assumptions, it does not mean that the entire argument is without base. Human impacts on the environment have always been very powerful, from the territory to the fauna. It may be possible that the mammals living in the islands were not developed enough to compete against humans’ intellect.

In sum, though there are several issues with the author’s reasoning, with research and clarification, he could improve his argument significantly. If the author truly hopes to prove that the human presence in the islands made mammals extinct, he would have to fix the flaws in his logic and explain his assumptions. Without these corrections, his argument will likely convince few people.