Final answer:
African bovid species experienced shifts in their populations and management over the last 10 million years due to human activity and changes in the environment, including the effects of the Pleistocene Extinction and human developments like the growth of Bantu kingdoms and changes in animal husbandry.
Step-by-step explanation:
Over the last 10 million years, bovid species in Africa, like many other regions, have undergone significant changes due to various factors. During the Pleistocene Extinction, which occurred around 10,000 to 12,000 years ago, many large mammals (megafauna) across the planet faced drastic population declines or extinction, driven in part by environmental changes and human activity. Although Africa did not experience this extinction event as dramatically as other continents did because humans had been present there for much longer, there's evidence suggesting that human impact and changing environments also affected African species. In more recent history, archaeological findings suggest that the growth and influence of Bantu kingdoms, as well as the introduction of Neolithic cultivation and Iron Age technologies, impacted the distribution and management of bovid species in Africa. Changes in animal husbandry practices, including the rotation of grazing lands, have been important for the sustainability of bovid populations. However, Africa did not lose as many large species as other continents did during the Pleistocene Extinction, partly because these species had co-evolved with humans for a much longer period, developing a sort of resilience to human pressures.