Canine Affair

A paper published in Nature Communications reports that climate changes transformed dogs to become more social and accept humans as leader of the pack.

The study asserts that ancient canines shifted from ambushing their prey to running for it because environmental changes transformed their woodland habitats into wide open spaces. Canines upon developing the running ability became pack animals wherein they cooperated and followed the leader of the pack.

The study establishes the impact of climate changes on mammals’ evolution. The research studied the fossilised elbow joints of dogs and figured out that their legs evolved from a structure that allowed for grabbing to one that allowed for running faster. Unlike other predators, dogs’ body evolved due to climatic changes and not because of changes in the bodies of prey.