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Human-canid relationship in the Americas: an examination of canid biological attributes and domestication

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Abstract

Nineteen species of wild canids interact with humans in the Americas in different ways. The zooarchaeological record of burials, shifts in diet, abundance at sites, and ethnological information document the various kinds of interactions of canids and humans in the Americas. However, none of these native canid species has been domesticated. To understand past and present interactions of canids and humans, and explore the biological attributes of native canids (diet, gestation length, occurrence in captivity, temperament, social system, weight, activity pattern, and relative abundance) in view of their suggested potential for domestication, we selected 163 publications from the zooarchaeological record and ethnological sources from the Americas. The compilation ranged between the years 1823 and 2021. The two species with the highest domestication potential based on their life history, social system, and diet are Canis latrans and Speothos venaticus. For the domestication of a canid species to occur, it is necessary to have the biological attributes to facilitate the process, and for the (human) potential domesticator the worldview consistent with this practice. The latter likely explains the lack of domesticated canids in the Amazon region.

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Fig. 1

Source of photographs: a Coyote Canis latrans (Jim Cumming), b Gray wolves Canis lupus (Sergei Brik), c Maned wolf Chrysocyon brachyurus (Anan Kaewkhammul), d Bush dog Speothos venaticus (Eric Isselee), e Gray fox Urocyon cinereoargenteus (Jay Pierstorff), f Artic fox Vulpes lagopus (Eric Isselee), and g Red fox Vulpes vulpes (FotoRequest)

Fig. 2

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Acknowledgements

We thank David Flores and Francisco Prevosti for the critical revision of this manuscript, Tesla Monson and Madeleine Geiger for discussions on canids in the Americas, Philippe Erikson for sharing bibliography, and Judith Recht for corrections of English language and for useful editorial suggestions. We also thank two anonymous reviewers who provided precise comments that helped us much to considerably improve this article, and Frank Zachos for editorial work. This research was supported by SNF grant 31003A_169395 to M.R.S.–V.

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Financial support was provided by the Swiss National Science Foundation Grant No. 31003A_169395 to MRSV.

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  1. Unidad Ejecutora Lillo, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas–Fundación Miguel Lillo, 4000, San Miguel de Tucumán, Tucumán, Argentina

    Valentina Segura

  2. Palaeontological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, 8006, Zurich, Switzerland

    Marcelo R. Sánchez-Villagra

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  1. Valentina Segura
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VS and MRSV designed the work, conducted the acquisition, analysis, and interpretation of data and prepared the manuscript.

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Segura, V., Sánchez-Villagra, M.R. Human-canid relationship in the Americas: an examination of canid biological attributes and domestication. Mamm Biol 101, 387–406 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42991-021-00129-y

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