NEW YORK — For years, scientists have been dogged by this evolution question: Just where did man’s best friend first appear?
The earliest known doglike fossils come from Europe. But DNA studies have implicated east Asia and the Middle East. Now a large DNA study is lining up with the fossils, suggesting dogs originated in Europe some 19,000 to 32,000 years ago.
Experts praised the new work but said it won’t end the debate.
Scientists generally agree that dogs emerged from wolves to become the first domesticated animal.
The latest attempt to figure out where this happened was published online Thursday by the journal Science.
The DNA of modern dogs showed similarities to the genetic material from the ancient European specimens and modern-day European wolves, the researchers reported.
The first dogs evolved by associating with hunter-gatherers rather than farmers, since dogs evidently appeared before agriculture did, they said.
