Domestication

Domestication or domestication is an intraspecific variation process of wild animals or plants in which they are genetically isolated by humans over the generations from the wild form. In order to live together with humans or other use through this, clearly " in his house " (Latin domus ), is made possible.

In a figurative sense, the term is also used to refer to defuse or falsification of an original idea, such as a political concept or a scientific theory.

The following text discusses the domestication of animals.

Domestication

The domestication of wild animals is due to the human selection and isolation of such individuals for breeding the kind which the desired properties most likely to meet, for example, lower aggression towards other dogs and people. Purpose of domestication is the use as agricultural or pet. The domestication should not be confused with the taming of a single wild animal.

By inserting the domestication of an animal species, the conditions for the development of the species are changed significantly. The natural evolutionary development is replaced by the selection criteria of man after breeding goals. The genetic characteristics of the animals therefore change during the domestication.

Important domesticated animal species

Predators

Wolves than dogs were the first pets and were probably trained initially as a hunting assistant and later as a herding dog. Coppinger and Zimen have another theory: The Wolf ( as a puppy ) joined the people. This early stage of (self- ) domestication can still be observed today on Pemba in East Africa and Namibia. You look at the " dog house " than in the juvenile phase persisting Wolf. This is supported by Zimens observation that juvenile wolves be trained just like dogs; with puberty, however they lose all tameness and change into pure wolf behavior (eg increased flight distance ).

The earliest evidence ( paw print ) is roughly 23,000 years old. A genetic calculation shows that dog and wolf have separated years ago, at least 135,000, thus means that dog or wolf pet longer were much already; More in: House dog.

Domestic cats are a domesticated about 9000 years ago carnivore species, which was first demonstrated in Cyprus. In Central Europe it displaced until some time after the beginning of our era the previously domesticated ferrets, derived from the polecat.

Herbivore

Herbivores were first the meat supply; their use as farm animals ( beast of burden ) occurred only thousands of years later. People already started 13,000 years ago ( 11,000 BC), first to domesticate animals probably in the area of the Fertile Crescent, first sheep, and later cattle and goats. Already 10,300 years ago such pets arrived in Cyprus. About 11,000 years ago, the pig was probably domesticated in Asia.

The first draft animal was castrated bull 7500 years ago. Donkey and horse ( in the Kazakh steppe ) later joined as beasts of burden, as draft animals, and then ultimately as mounts. At the same time came with the dromedary, the first Kamelart in use. Original features of the horse were in the Caspian pony. Linguistic language research found typical rider concepts mentioned in the oldest Indo-European language family. However, studies on the mitochondrial DNA of the animals did not show any common breeding stock. The horse was after the ice age in isolated areas as " residual population " left behind (eg Iberian horses). A introgression of such wild remnant populations is assumed to explain this. This represents a form of Nachdomestikation shows that from 3500 BC AD is evidence in the northeastern Europe and from 1500 BC and in Western Europe (Shetland Pony).

In the recent history were finally llama, guinea pigs domesticated in the Americas and reindeer in Russia for meat. In the recent time, the domestication of various laboratory animals and pets, such as hamsters and gold color mouse fell.

Suspected chronology and sources

The chronology of many Domestikationsergebnisse is not yet clear. Some domestication occurred repeatedly ( multicentric ), therefore, often several times or more sites are indicated:

According to the traditional view in the last Ice Age, in minutes. 14,000 years; domesticated but most probably already more than 30,000 years ago

Characteristic changes by domestication

With the domestication are usually a number of typical characteristic changes compared with the wild type determine (see the fox experiment of Trut et al. Well as the work of Hermann von Nathusius, see literature). These Domestikationseffekten include:

• Anatomical changes Training of breeds with sometimes severe differences in appearance (for example, the two descended from the wolf breeds Chihuahua and Saint Bernard )
• Reduction of the dentition and of horns
• Reduction of the skin (for example, in the domestic pig )
• To diverse color change of camouflage out eye-catching colors ( for example, goldfish or Koi)
• Occurrence of hanging ears
• Steeper forehead
• Decrease in brain mass by up to 34 percent, decline of cleavage, especially in the important for the processing of the sensory areas of the brain
• Reductions in the digestive tract
• Gain for the people of useful properties (for example, milk yield in cattle )

• Reduced aggressiveness
• Less well-developed escape and defense behavior
• Increased reproductive rate, partly to the complete abandonment of the seasonality of reproduction
• Less pronounced brood care behavior

Since such effects are partially observed in humans (eg, compared to the Neanderthals ), speak some biologists (among Konrad Lorenz ) also from the " Verhaustierung " of man in the course of its development. Many of these features are retained youth properties. One speaks here of neoteny.

• Training of races

St. Bernard

Chihuahua

• Reduction of the Fells

Domestic Pig

• To diverse color change of camouflage out eye-catching color options

Koi