Posted on 09/13/2022 9:10:56 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
From pulling Mesopotamian war chariots to grinding grain in the Middle Ages, donkeys have carried civilization on their backs for centuries. DNA has now revealed just how ancient humans’ relationship with donkeys really is.
The genetic instruction books of over 200 donkeys from countries around the world show that these beasts of burden were domesticated about 7,000 years ago in East Africa, researchers report in the Sept. 9 Science...
This discovery shows that donkeys were domesticated in one fell swoop, roughly 3,000 years before horses.
DNA has great potential for unraveling humankind’s shared history with our animal companions. In 2021, Orlando and his colleagues used DNA from the bones of horses to track their domestication to the Eurasian steppes, in what’s now southwestern Russia, more than 4,200 years ago...
Archaeological evidence — including a 5,000-year-old Egyptian tablet depicting marching asses, sheep and cattle — zeroed in on Africa as the most probable contender. But genetic studies attempting to pin down when and where donkeys were domesticated have been largely inconclusive.
(Excerpt) Read more at sciencenews.org ...
But, don't turn your back on him; he's a pony-tail puller. ;)
“Well accepted” and actually supported by data are two different things. :^)
Outdoors/Rural/wildlife/hunting/hiking/backpacking/National Parks/animals list please FR mail me to be on or off . And ping me is you see articles of interest.
:^)
Some creatures are still in line to be domesticated note the long lines in NY LA ........................................
The word “noble” comes to mind.😍
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