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Competitive Exclusion and the Homo Species" ... ... - Mohsen Ezz El-Din Al-Bakri - Jan 1, 2026
Why did many animal species survive, while only one species of Homo remains?
The reason depends on two main points:
1. Competitive Exclusion:
If two species use the same resources in the same area, only one will survive.
Precise examples from animals and their geographic ranges:
Arabian Leopard: Arabian Peninsula only
Bengal Tiger: India and Bangladesh
Siberian Tiger: Russian and Chinese Far East
Bears:
Polar Bear: Arctic
Brown Bear: Europe, Asia, North America
Black Bear: North America
Hyenas:
Spotted Hyena: Sub-Saharan Africa
Brown Hyena: North and East Africa
Striped Hyena (Western): West Africa
Lesson:
Any two species that are similar in diet, habitat, and lifestyle cannot share the same area for long. The stronger species dominates, and the weaker one disappears.
Geographic isolation allows diversity, but humans’ widespread expansion eliminated other species.
Ancient Humans:
Homo sapiens originated in Africa
Spread to Europe, Asia, Australia, and the Americas
Entered areas inhabited by Neanderthals, Denisovans, and other Homo species
Competed with them directly — either merged or they disappeared
Result:
Humans are mobile and occupy every region, which is why only one species survived, despite previous diversity.
Conclusion:
Animals have many surviving species because each one is geographically isolated.
Humans, however, left only one species because they moved everywhere and outcompeted any other human species sharing the same area—not necessarily by direct conflict, but by competing for the same resources and lifestyle.
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