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helen briggs
A large study showed that domestic cats originated as wild cats and have been domesticated twice in history — once in the Near East and once in Egypt.
Near Eastern farmers about 9,000 years ago were likely the first to successfully domesticate wildcats. Thousands of years later, cats once again spread from ancient Egypt along maritime trade routes. To this day, cats are found on all continents except Antarctica.
Scientists believe that wild cats wandering around the farm in order to catch rats tempted by grain grain are the beginning of the human-cat relationship.
Lead researcher eva-maria Geigl said: "The domestication event occurred twice in total, the first in the Near East and the later in Egypt. Cats soon spread to all corners of the ancient world as a fixed member of the ship. The two cat families now coexist in modern cats. ”
From master mouse catchers to pets
Cats are not always lazy creatures, only know how to lie at home and live in peace. Before becoming domestic animals, they had been working diligently as rat catchers on ships and farms for thousands of years.
"I would say that the cat chose humans as partners, but this is a mutually beneficial and symbiotic relationship." Dr Geigl explained. She works at the institut jacques monod in Paris.
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For the study, the researchers extracted mitochondrial DNA (a type of DNA inherited maternally) from the remains of more than 200 ancient cats from Viking tombs, Egyptian mummies and Stone Age sites. DNA evidence suggests that the domestication of cats began in the Near East, about 9,000 years ago, which is also the birthplace of agriculture. The farmers were likely the first to domesticate wildcats and then take them on their journeys, consciously or unconsciously.
The second wave of cat domestication took place in ancient Egypt. Cats spread to Europe during the Roman period and spread further in the Viking Age. Dna from Egyptian cats can even be detected in Viking ports, indicating that cats spread to Northern Europe via maritime trade routes.
Surprisingly, tabby cats only appeared in the Middle Ages. DNA evidence suggests that a genetic mutation that brought about mottled patterns occurred in a 14th-century cat in western Turkey.
Over the next few hundred years, tabby cats spread around the world, and cats were favored for their beautiful appearance rather than their practical killing techniques.
cornish rex
Dr Geigl said: "Compared to dogs, cats did not undergo much breeding and screening in the 19th century. Cats have been useful from the start, and that has never changed. ”
Today's cats are of a wide variety of breeds, with markings and furs. From hairless, diminutive Babino to curly-haired Cornish monarch cats, cat breeds are exotic.
The study was published in Nature Ecology & Evolution.
This article is translated from bbc and published by translator dubulidu under the Creative Commons License (by-nc).