>>58038808What happens is that they are highly specialized; they adapted for thousands of years to an environment largely untouched by human presence, feeding on a low-energy source and basing their defense on size. Even for Native Americans, it was difficult to see one of these creatures due to the difficulty of accessing their territories.
Pandas are another similar case. They can thrive within their specific niche, "but many die due to idiocy", and that's normal*. Their population self-regulates, preserving the fittest. Despite being carnivores adapted to a primarily herbivorous diet, they are still carnivores that protect a territory, they coexisting as a herd of herbivores is not normal, so their population being small is common. The real cause of the panda and manatee's extinction is that their habitat is being altered, either through logging or maritime traffic.
*For example, only 53% of wolf pups reach adulthood, and only 20% of them survive past the age of 3yo. As with other carnivores, the causes of death vary. The problem with pandas is that, to us, their accidents seem stupid, but it's simply an anthropomorphization of animal behavior.
