2024/12/04 by François Lanoë, Joshua D. Reuther, Stormy Fields +15 · 1 voice
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Environmental Science · Health Professions · #Human-Animal Interaction Studies #Indigenous Studies and Ecology #Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
paper · doi:10.1126/sciadv.ads1335
openalex publication_date 2024/12/04 · openalex created_date 2024/12/05 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/26
Large canids (wolves, dogs, and coyote) and people form a close relationship in northern (subarctic and arctic) socioecological systems. Here, we document the antiquity of this bond and the multiple ways it manifested in interior Alaska, a region key to understanding the peopling of the Americas and early northern lifeways. We compile original and existing genomic, isotopic, and osteological canid data from archaeological, paleontological, and modern sites. Results show that in contrast to canids recovered in non-anthropic contexts, canids recovered in association with human occupations are markedly diverse. They include multiple species and intraspecific lineages, morphological variation, and diets ranging from terrestrial to marine. This variation is expressed along both geographic and temporal gradients, starting in the terminal Pleistocene with canids showing high marine dietary estimates. This paper provides evidence of the multiple ecological relationships between canids and people in the north-from predation, probable commensalism, and taming, to domestication-and of their early onset.