Was an extinct fox once man’s best friend? – 04/11/2024 – Science

Our ancestors may have kept foxes as pets long before domestic dogs arrived on the scene.

Archaeological evidence suggests that ancient human societies in South America revered foxes to such an extent that when they died, people were buried alongside the animals.

Scientists were surprised to find a fox buried in a human tomb dating back 1,500 years in Argentine Patagonia. The discovery was detailed this Wednesday (10) in the scientific journal Royal Society Open Science.

Scientists say they believe the most likely explanation is that the fox was a highly prized pet.

A DNA analysis shows that the animal dined with prehistoric hunters and was part of the camp’s inner circle.

Almost a decade ago, a fox of the same species was found in a much older tomb in another part of Argentina. She may also have been a pet, but her diet has not been analyzed.

“This is a very rare discovery about the fox, which appears to have had such a close connection with individuals from the hunter-gatherer society,” says researcher Ophélie Lebrasseur, from the University of Oxford, one of the authors of the recently published study.

“I think it was more than just symbolic; I really think it was companionship.”

The fox was found in the Cañada Seca cemetery in Argentina, which was once inhabited by groups of hunter-gatherers.

Teeth from wild foxes have previously been found in ancient human cemeteries in Argentina and Peru, suggesting the animal had symbolic significance.

But the discovery of a nearly complete skeleton of a fox in a human grave is extremely rare in the world’s archaeological record.

The fox, which goes by the scientific name Dusicyon avus, was medium-sized and weighed 10 to 15 kg. This species became extinct about 500 years ago, a few hundred years after domestic dogs arrived in Patagonia.

The study was carried out in collaboration with researcher Cinthia Abbona, from the Mendoza Evolution Institute, in Argentina, and is signed by a total of nine researchers.