Between 1,500 BC and around AD 500, the Nasca civilization prospered in Peru. Their famous remnants are the Nazca Lines – vast line drawings of animals (right photo) and abstract figures that can be seen from Space. But these Nascans, they disappeared suddenly. And no one knows why. Today, a couple of researchers have an idea.
Looks like they fell into the same pickle the Easter Islanders did, at least according to that analysis by Jared Diamond. Deforestation, yo. They cleared out the huarango forests to make way for agricultural clearances of cotton and maize. Trouble was, the huarango tree underpinned the entire ecosystem – which, in due time, collapsed, destroying the natural irrigation ecosystem that provided the water to grow the crops in the first place. Resource war! Resource war! Goodbye good, big-thinking Nasca folks. Here’s the full story if you wan’ it.