He dog (Dog family If it is taken as a kind or Doghouse considered as a subspecies of the wolf)It is a carnivorous mammal from the Canid family. Experts estimate that there are around 1000 million dogs around the world and there are more than 300 recognized varieties and much more to recognize.
He Domestic Dog comes from a common ancestral group whose data date from more than thirty thousand yearsThe first fossil remains of buried dogs together with people, a sign of homeliness, were found in the Jordan -Valley and are about twelve thousand years. Because they have left the packs of wolves and are integrated into people, dogs have evolved together in all cultures of the world.
Evolution of dog races
During millennia people have made selective breeding of dogs to increase their grazing skills, hunting, such as pets or for protection. A new study by scientists from the University of Chapman in California (US) asks the hypothesis that the appearance of a race Helping directly with the specialization of tasks.
The researchers concentrated their work on the dog’s skull. From 117 Museum Specimens they generated 3D reconstructions of 41 domestic breeds and 18 wild subspecies. They then investigated whether every race had distinctive characteristics for their planned goal. For example, they studied whether the skulls of the varieties used by the forces of the Order and the Army had distinctive characteristics for jobs such as such as track.
The skull of dogs
They discovered that the morphologies of this group were statistically very similar to those of other breeds that were not intended for protection, as well as those of Lobos and Coyotes. Only some company varieties had distinctive morphologies linked to the Extreme structure of your snout.
It is expected that seeing the characteristics of these skulls, such as breeding to obtain specialized forms, another group formed by the varieties designed with a specific task as a result thereof specialization.
“This does not happen in our analysis and that is why we can be sure that breeding of specialized forms has not had considerable success. But that does not mean that selective breeding has been completely not effective. What seems to happen, and what people really have to be effective – Generate races that are susceptible to personalities and behavior who ensure that they perform specific tasks and make them more effective, ”says Sinc Nicholas Hebdon, main author of the study published by the magazine Science is progressing.
Specific physical characteristics
To explain why externally it seems that these awards exist, the researcher explains that all that variation is Divides fairly uniform among the different groupsInstead that each of them has unique characteristics. “It is not that there is not much variation, but that the person we see has no pattern as expected,” he emphasizes.
Therefore selective breeding of specific physical characteristics as a way to improve performance In the case of the skull it is not handy. For example, changes in snout are not related to benefits in animals used for certain odor works.
“There are races with a wide or deep snout that are not used to develop that capacity and in the same way there are races that do not have those functions that we often use. Everything is reduced to those who can’t do that visually observe or that can be of a more cognitive nature“Says Hebdon.
Selective dogs
The selective breeding of this Dog Races has a fairly long storyBut also quite confusing because of the lack of records and details. The process seems to start quite organically: some dog owners they use for specific tasks (grazing, hunting, etc.) just cross with others who know they are very successful in those tasks.
At some point people realize that there is something in the form of the dogs that seems to be related and it is assumed that there is one Link between form and functionWhat a selection factor becomes. As animals remain effective, assumptions are strengthened, although there are hidden factors that can promote that success. As the number of people who know these ideas increases, they include them in their process and they become a usual practice. “A self -reference lus is created in the observations,” the scientist emphasizes.
‘When I started, it surprised me The little we understand from dogsTaking into account the important ones that are for us as work partners and animals in so many different tasks. If this is the case in the case of dogs, imagine how much we naturally consider in our knowledge of other species, “Hebdon emphasizes.
The aim of the team is now to continue to explore these form-function relationships in other species. “But we are not done with dogs, this work has fascinated me and my intention is to delve more into the understanding of these animals and The differences in development and evolution with regard to other wild kanidesHe concludes.