Reconstructing prehistoric animal communities is important for understanding the emergence of modern ecosystems and the environmental context of human evolution. A new study of African fossils spanning seven million years shows that ancient large-herbivore assemblages were functionally distinct from those that exist today.

中文翻译：

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古生态学：古代巨型动物的功能独特性

重建史前动物群落对于理解现代生态系统的出现和人类进化的环境背景非常重要。一项对跨越七百万年的非洲化石的新研究表明，古代大型食草动物组合在功能上与今天存在的不同。