What is a dingo – origins, hybridisation and identity

Abstract

Controversy about the nomenclature and taxonomy of dingoes has sparked interest in their complex identity. At the root of taxonomy debates are differences in the species concepts employed, differing opinions about the domestication status of dingoes (and their ancestors) and a simplistic handling of the complex evolutionary relationship between wolves, dingoes and domestic dogs. I explore the relationship of dingoes to village dogs, modern breed dogs and wolves using genome-wide SNP data and discuss the implications of these findings to the ongoing debate about dingo identity and nomenclature. Importantly, despite controversy about what to call dingoes and whether they are a full species, these animals represent an important, distinct and unique evolutionary unit worthy of high conservation priority, as a native species. There is growing concern about the spread of domestic dog genes into dingo populations, particularly in southeastern Australia, and the impact this has on conservation goals. However, the discovery of biogeographic subdivision within dingoes raises questions about the accuracy of the current methods used for estimating dog vs dingo ancestry. I caution scientists and wildlife managers to carefully consider the limitations of current ancestry estimate methods when assessing DNA test results. Future work using genome-wide DNA technology to improve dingo ancestry estimates will be fundamental to ongoing debate about what dingoes are, how to identify dingoes and how to conserve them.

The myth of wild dogs in Australia: are there any out there?

“…Dingoes, including New Guinea singing dogs, form a discrete lineage from Eurasian and modern domestic dogs (Bergstro ¨m et al 2020;Surbakti et al 2020;Cairns 2021). Their domestication status and taxonomic nomenclature is disputed, with some considering them Canis familiaris, a feral domestic dog (Jackson et al 2017(Jackson et al , 2019 and others calling them Canis dingo, a wild protodog (Crowther et al 2014;Smith et al 2019;Zhang et al 2020).…”

“…Their domestication status and taxonomic nomenclature is disputed, with some considering them Canis familiaris, a feral domestic dog (Jackson et al 2017(Jackson et al , 2019 and others calling them Canis dingo, a wild protodog (Crowther et al 2014;Smith et al 2019;Zhang et al 2020). Globally, most free-breeding, village and breed dogs fall within the modern domestic dog lineage (Bergstro ¨m et al 2020;Surbakti et al 2020;Cairns 2021). A close relationship between dingoes, Asian wolves, and some East Asian dogs has been observed, suggesting the dingoes' ancestor was of Asian origin (vonHoldt et al 2010;Oskarsson et al 2011;Freedman et al 2014;Surbakti et al 2020;Zhang et al 2020;Cairns 2021).…”

“…Globally, most free-breeding, village and breed dogs fall within the modern domestic dog lineage (Bergstro ¨m et al 2020;Surbakti et al 2020;Cairns 2021). A close relationship between dingoes, Asian wolves, and some East Asian dogs has been observed, suggesting the dingoes' ancestor was of Asian origin (vonHoldt et al 2010;Oskarsson et al 2011;Freedman et al 2014;Surbakti et al 2020;Zhang et al 2020;Cairns 2021). Dingoes and New Guinea singing dogs are examples of true wildliving dogs that are not reliant on artificial water or food sources.…”

An isolated population reveals greater genetic structuring of the Australian dingo

“…Corbett 6 reported trade between north Australian First Peoples and Malaysian seafarers bearing on-board dogs continuing until the 1920s. Although cultural and trade interactions with New Guinea across the Torres Strait persisted, dingoes remained relatively isolated from other dog populations until British colonisation in 1788 (The possible sequence of dingo evolution, introduction in Australia and adaptation can be found in Balme and O’Connor 12 and Cairns 13 ). Being a highly mobile and tameable generalist carnivore, and useful to First Nations peoples, the dingo likely spread from northern Australian introduction points and became established in most Australian environments 6 .…”

The provenance of diagnostic specimens of the ‘New Guinea Singing Dog’

“…Koler-Matznick et al (2007: 49) wrote that the 'current captive singing dog population is descended from eight specimens not directly caught in the wild' and then commented that 'this does not mean, however, that these specimens were village C. familiaris'. Recent genetic studies, however, using samples from the captive population, treat those dogs as descendants of wild-living forebears (Surbatki et al 2020) and, in direct contradiction to Koler-Matznick et al (2007: 49), Cairns (2021) asserts that most of the captive NGSD population was 'founded by 8 individuals captured from the wild in 1950'.…”