[Rockhounds] Two ancient wolf populations contributed to modern dog breeds

[Paul]

Two ancient wolf populations which evolved into man’s best
friend. DNA study closes in on solving the mystery of where
and when dogs were domesticated. Imma Perfetto, Cosmos.
https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/ancient-wolf-populations-dog-ancestors/

The open access paper is:

Bergström, A., Stanton, D.W., Taron, U.H., Frantz, L., Sinding,
M.H.S., Ersmark, E., Pfrengle, S., Cassatt-Johnstone, M.,
Lebrasseur, O., Girdland-Flink, L. and Fernandes, D.M., 2022.
Grey wolf genomic history reveals a dual ancestry of dogs.
Nature, 607(7918), pp.313-320.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04824-9

Another article is:

Shrinking bodies and shrinking brains
The transition from ancient wolves to small dogs was a simple
one, but domestication may have whittled away cats’ brains.
Jamie Preist, Cosmos, January 22, 2022
https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/evolution/shrinking-bodies-and-shrinking-brains/

Yours,

Paul H.