US EditionAncient DNA Pushes Dog Domestication Back 5,000 Years
Two new ancient-DNA studies sequenced over 200 genomes, confirming dog domestication at least 15,000 years ago before farming began, researchers said.
- On Wednesday, researchers published findings in the journal Nature confirming dogs have lived alongside humans for at least 15,800 years, pushing back the known domestication timeline by 5,000 years.
- Genetic research suggests dogs descended from gray wolves during the last glacial maximum roughly 26,000 to 20,000 years ago, as populations were forced into shared refuges in northern Eurasia.
- Scientists identified ancient dog remains at Pinarbasi in Turkey and Gough's Cave in England dating to 14,300 years ago, confirming canines were widely distributed across Europe and western Asia.
- Archaeological evidence indicates these early dogs were well-tempered members of human groups; researchers found that humans at Pinarbasi fed their dogs fish and buried them alongside their own dead.
- While these studies clarify the timeline, the exact geographic origin of dog domestication remains a mystery, though geneticist Anders Bergström of the University of East Anglia in England believes the process likely happened in Asia.
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114 Articles
The oldest genetically protected dog in the world comes from today's Turkey – and is much older than agriculture. Two studies bring new insights into its rapid spread in Europe.
Two recent studies, based on DNA research, question previous research that estimated at about 11,000 years the first links between humans and canidians.Where do dogs come from and since when do they accompany humans? New studies establish their presence in Europe nearly 16,000 years ago, or 5000 years earlier than previous research assessed. "The origin of dogs – likely a mixture of two types of grey wolves – remains an interesting mystery," for…
Where do dogs come from and since when do they accompany people? New studies place their presence in Europe almost 16,000 years ago, that is 5,000 years earlier than they estimated previous research.
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