Humans have some of the most impressive endurance capabilities of any animal on the planet, particularly when it comes to long-distance running.
Take a cheetah, for example. It can reach roughly 60–70 mph, but it can only sustain that kind of sprint for a matter of seconds before it overheats and has to stop. A human obviously can’t come remotely close to that speed, but we can keep running for hours, especially in hot conditions where many other mammals are forced to slow down or stop.
That endurance would have been an enormous advantage for a hunter. Combine it with human-level intelligence, cooperation, communication, and the ability to track prey over long distances, and you end up with what is essentially a soft, squishy killing machine that just keeps coming.
You don’t have to be the fastest animal if you can simply keep following your prey until it can’t run anymore.
I think it’s been explained, but to reiterate, while humans aren’t fast, we’re very good at walking/trotting for extended periods of time - both because we have sweat glands that many animals lack, but also because bipedal locomotion is more efficient over a long distance.
Our earlier ancestors would set out after a herbivore, say an aurochs (the bigger the better), during the hottest part of the day, and cause it to flee. When it stopped to cool, they’d jog up after it and caused it to run away again, until it got so hot that it collapsed from heatstroke.
humans sweat but antelopes don’t. this means that humans (and also wolves and some other social canids, and hyenas that pant instead) can just jog following a herd until antelopes collapse from heat exhaustion. this is called persistence hunting
Tribes, and wolves and dogs (they are distinct and out pals came from dogs not wolves, their split happened much earlier I’ve been informed,) would follow herds for months. Indefinitely.
I have zero clue what this means
Humans have some of the most impressive endurance capabilities of any animal on the planet, particularly when it comes to long-distance running.
Take a cheetah, for example. It can reach roughly 60–70 mph, but it can only sustain that kind of sprint for a matter of seconds before it overheats and has to stop. A human obviously can’t come remotely close to that speed, but we can keep running for hours, especially in hot conditions where many other mammals are forced to slow down or stop.
That endurance would have been an enormous advantage for a hunter. Combine it with human-level intelligence, cooperation, communication, and the ability to track prey over long distances, and you end up with what is essentially a soft, squishy killing machine that just keeps coming.
You don’t have to be the fastest animal if you can simply keep following your prey until it can’t run anymore.
We are the Yautya of our planet.
Or highway star if you like Jojo
I think it’s been explained, but to reiterate, while humans aren’t fast, we’re very good at walking/trotting for extended periods of time - both because we have sweat glands that many animals lack, but also because bipedal locomotion is more efficient over a long distance.
Our earlier ancestors would set out after a herbivore, say an aurochs (the bigger the better), during the hottest part of the day, and cause it to flee. When it stopped to cool, they’d jog up after it and caused it to run away again, until it got so hot that it collapsed from heatstroke.
We’re having steak, boys!
humans sweat but antelopes don’t. this means that humans (and also wolves and some other social canids, and hyenas that pant instead) can just jog following a herd until antelopes collapse from heat exhaustion. this is called persistence hunting
Mongolians still fuck with it as far as I know, also coupled with falcons
Now the most persistent hunting my dog and I do is to the kitchen to rummage for a snack.
Tribes, and wolves and dogs (they are distinct and out pals came from dogs not wolves, their split happened much earlier I’ve been informed,) would follow herds for months. Indefinitely.