One indication that a particular group of animals might be domesticated is a difference in body size and shape (called morphology) between a domestic population and animals found in the wild. The theory is that over a few generations of keeping animals, average body size changes because the farmers deliberately select for certain desirable characteristics. For example, the farmer might consciously or unconsciously select for smaller animals, by killing the larger unruly ones before they have a chance to breed, or keeping the ones that mature earlier.
However, it doesn't always work that way. Llamas, for example, get bigger feet, the theory being that poorer diet leads to malformation of the foot. Other morphological changes identified by archaeologists include cattle and sheep losing their horns, and pigs trading muscles for fat and smaller teeth. In some cases, specific traits are purposefully developed and maintained in an animal population, resulting in different breeds of animals such as cattle, horses, sheep or dogs.
More Signs of Domestication
- Body Morphology
- Demography and Mortality Profiles
- Site Assemblage
- Animal Burials
- Animal Diets
