Archaeologists reported evidence of 5,000-year-old domesticated wolves on a remote Baltic island, suggesting closer human-wolf relationships than previously understood for that era.
The find challenges assumptions that wolf domestication occurred only in a few well-studied regions. Skeletal and genetic analysis indicated managed populations rather than purely wild animals.
Dog domestication research has accelerated with ancient DNA techniques that trace lineages across continents. Baltic sites have yielded fewer specimens than Middle Eastern or East Asian locations studied earlier.
Scientists cautioned that distinguishing managed wolves from early dogs requires careful morphological and genomic comparison.
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Sources:
https://www.sciencedaily.com/