Dogs existed before farming, ancient DNA shows

Two papers in Nature report genetic evidence of dogs from the Paleolithic, with remains dated as old as about 15,800 years and canine DNA found at five sites from Britain to Turkey; the dogs were genetically similar even though the human groups varied.

New genetic analyses published in Nature identify dog remains from the Paleolithic period. Researchers recovered and analyzed ancient canine DNA from archaeological sites across Europe and western Asia. The oldest dog in the analysis dates to about 15,800 years ago, extending the genetic record of dogs by nearly 5,000 years. Although the human groups at those sites were diverse, the dogs were closely related. Key findings: - Canine DNA was identified at five archaeological sites stretching from Britain to Turkey. - The oldest specimen was dated to about 15,800 years ago, pushing back the oldest known genetic evidence of dogs by nearly 5,000 years. - Across the sites, dogs were more genetically similar to one another than the associated human populations were. - Researchers suggest that hunter-gatherer groups exchanged dogs or acquired them from one another. - The studies were published as two papers in Nature and involved international research teams, with a University of Oxford paleogeneticist among the authors. Summary: These papers move the earliest genetic evidence of dogs into the Paleolithic and indicate that similar dog lineages were present across different hunter-gatherer societies before agriculture. Undetermined at this time.