What the study found
A genetically homogeneous dog population was already widely distributed across Europe and Anatolia during the Late Upper Palaeolithic, by at least 14,300 years ago.
Why the authors say this matters
The authors suggest this means dogs were exchanged among genetically and culturally distinct western Eurasian Late Palaeolithic human populations, including the Magdalenian, Epigravettian, and Anatolian hunter-gatherers.
What the researchers tested
The researchers generated nuclear and mitochondrial genomes from canid remains from Pınarbaşı in Türkiye and Gough's Cave in the UK, and from dogs from two Mesolithic sites in Serbia, Padina and Vlasac. They compared these genomes to assess dog ancestry and distribution across time and regions.
What worked and what didn't
The analyses indicated a shared dog population across the regions sampled in the Late Upper Palaeolithic. The study also identified a major influx of eastern Eurasian dog ancestry during the Mesolithic, associated with eastern hunter-gatherer movement into Europe, which led to the ancestry pattern seen in European dogs today.
What to keep in mind
The abstract does not describe detailed limitations beyond the geographic and chronological scope of the sampled remains. The conclusions are based on the specific ancient genomes and sites named in the study.
Key points
- Ancient dog genomes from Türkiye, the UK, and Serbia were analyzed.
- A genetically homogeneous dog population was already widespread in Europe and Anatolia by at least 14,300 years ago.
- The authors suggest dogs were exchanged among distinct western Eurasian hunter-gatherer populations.
- A major influx of eastern Eurasian dog ancestry occurred during the Mesolithic.
- This Mesolithic ancestry shift helped shape present-day European dog populations.
Disclosure
- Research title:
- Ancient dog genomes show wide Palaeolithic distribution in western Eurasia
- Authors:
- William A Marsh, Lachie Scarsbrook, Eren Yüncü, Lizzie Hodgson, Audrey T. Lin, Maria De Iorio, Olaf Thalmann, Mark G. Thomas, Mahaut Goor, Anders Bergström, Angela Noseda, Sarieh Amiri, Fereidoun Biglari, Dušan BORIĆ, Katia Bougiouri, Alberto Carmagnini, Maddalena Giannì, Tom Higham, Ophélie Lebrasseur, Anna Linderholm, Marcello A. Mannino, Caroline Middleton, Gökhan Mustafaoğlu, Angela Perri, Joris Peters, Mike Richards, Özlem Sarıtaş, Pontus Skoglund, Rhiannon E. Stevens, Chris Stringer, Kristina Tabbada, Helen M. Talbot, Laura G. Van der Sluis, Silvia M. Bello, Vesna Dimitrijevic, Louise Martin, Marjan Mashkour, Simon A. Parfitt, Sonja Vuković, Selina Brace, Oliver E. Craig, Douglas Baird, Sophy Charlton, Greger Larson, Ian Barnes, Laurent Frantz
- Institutions:
- Natural History Museum, Oxford Archaeology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Middle East Technical University, University of York, Smithsonian Institution, American Museum of Natural History, National Museum of Natural History, National University of Singapore, Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, University College London, University of East Anglia, Histoire Naturelle des Humanités Préhistoriques, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, University of Georgia, University of Tehran, Sapienza University of Rome, University of Copenhagen, University of Vienna, Institute of Human Sciences, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Université Fédérale de Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, University of Oxford, Géosciences Environnement Toulouse, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Stockholm University, Centre for Palaeogenetics, Aarhus University, University of Liverpool, Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli University, Bavarian State Collection of Zoology, Simon Fraser University, Hitit Üniversitesi, The Francis Crick Institute, Genomics (United Kingdom), University of Belgrade, Queen Mary University of London, London School of Business and Management
- Publication date:
- 2026-03-25
- OpenAlex record:
- View
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