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Why is it assumed "dogs" are derived from wolves, rather than both derived from a shared ancestor? If one looks at feral dogs (dingos, so-called American dingo
by jjtheblunt 5y ago
Why is it assumed "dogs" are derived from wolves, rather than both derived from a shared ancestor?
If one looks at feral dogs (dingos, so-called American dingos, the middle east strays brought to the west with soldiers) they look very very similar, as if some fixed point of feral qualities is being approximated.
While a Husky and Malamute both clearly resemble a wolf, the vague fixed point of feral dogs that, across the world, look so very similar (vaguely like a yellow lab breed, but not quite), makes me question the wolf origin.
(I say that having invested career on the topic)
- quercusa 5y agoWould the standard feral dog color suggest an origin someplace sandy?
- jjtheblunt 5y agogood question, but central American / Caribbean is lush vegetation, so another guess might be reflecting sun?
- quercusa 5y agoCould be, but[0] suggests native populations were replaced by European varieties. Dogs were present in pre-Columbian America, presumably brought by early human migrants from Asia. Studies of free-ranging village/street dogs have indicated almost total replacement of these original dogs by European dogs, but the extent to which Arctic, North and South American breeds are descendants of the original population remains to be assessed. [0] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/248397726_Pre-Columbian_origins_of_Native_American_dog_breeds_with_only_limited_replacement_by_European_dogs_confirmed_by_mtDNA_analysis https://www.researchgate.net/publication/248397726_Pre-Colum...