[Animals] What are the differences between dogs and wolves?

[#Steeven.™]

Although we know that modern dogs and wolves shared a common ancestor around 15,000 years ago, no one is sure how they first became domesticated…or even when. What we do know is that, at some point, dogs went from ignoring humans to wanting to be their best friends.

Despite sharing about 99% of their DNA and belonging to the same species, dogs and wolves have a considerable number of differences. This is because, according to scientific estimates, these two animals separated in their evolution, at least, more than 15 thousand years ago.

In this way, despite being breeds of the same species (wolf: canis lupus / dog: canis lupus familiaris), there are multiple areas in which our pets resemble and differ from their non-domesticated version.

“The evolutionary origin of the dog dates back approximately 100,000 years, from its common ancestor with the wolf. However, the morphological changes that substantially differentiated it from its wild ancestors occurred between 10,000 and 15,000 years ago, probably due to the shift in human societies from hunter-gatherers to a more sedentary agricultural-cultural lifestyle that imposed new pressures. selective to dogs”, indicates the study Communication between domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) and men, published in the Latin American Journal of Psychology.

In addition to this, humans have selectively bred dogs with certain characteristics (hunting skills and obedience) that have determined the particularities observed in modern dogs, and that differentiates them from the rest of their species.

Research by Duke University scientists suggests that the domestication of dogs also altered social maturation through a selection process to attract humans. "Dogs became more flexible in using inherited abilities to communicate cooperatively with a new social partner that they previously feared and expressed these unusual social skills early in development," reads the study published in the journal Current Biology.
Although they have significant physical similarities, dogs have a smaller skull and brain than the average wolf. In addition to this, wolves have larger teeth and jaws due to the survival needs experienced by this wild species.

The latter is also reflected in the size of both. Thus, wolves are generally heavier, averaging between 22 and 34 kilograms, while dogs average around 13 kilograms.

With the variety of dog breeds that exist, they can have more rounded or drooping ears, but wolves always have them upright and triangular. Likewise, wolves are almost the same size for everyone, while dogs, due to genetic mutations, can be small, medium, or large.

Dogs have a life expectancy between 12 and 18 years, while wolves can live 7 years in the wild and 15 in captivity.
It should be noted that despite the great variability in dog breeds, they are still closer in genetic and physical terms than when compared to a wolf.

Due to their domestication process, dogs are comparably calmer and more obedient than their evolutionary cousins. In that sense, canine pets tend to remain in a state of youthful development even into adulthood, due to their dependence on their owner.

This phenomenon is called "neoteny", which implies that the juvenile stage of a species is longer than that of its ancestors or close species. The latter is related to the shortening of the muzzle in dogs.

By contrast, wolves tend to mature quickly, and unlike dogs, which are pack animals, they can live solitary and independently. Thus, some studies indicate that although they can be trained like dogs, wolves cannot be tamed.

In a study published in 2017, scientists identified a gene that allows dogs to be distinguished from wolves. Thus, a gene was found in the former that has similarities with people diagnosed with Williams-Beuren syndrome.

"This finding suggests that there are commonalities in the genetic architecture of the PEP and the canine mapo[CENSORED]tion and that directional selection may have targeted a unique set of linked behavioral genes of great phenotypic effect, allowing for rapid behavioral divergence of dogs and wolves." , facilitating coexistence with humans”, indicates the study.

In this way, although pets have similarities with wolves, they have differences that allow us to coexist, in different spaces, with dogs.

 

https://www.elespectador.com/la-red-zoocial/perros/cuales-son-las-diferencias-entre-perros-y-lobos-noticias-hoy/