The continued expansion of people into the natural environment may trigger the emergence of new pets that will feel increasingly comfortable in the urban spaces we have created. Researchers at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR) have noticed anatomical changes in raccoons and wondered if these little trash pandas are actually going through the domestication process just by spending so much time around us.
Their study, published in Frontiers of Zoologydescribes that urban raccoons have smaller snouts than their rural counterparts, which is similar to patterns seen in other domesticated species. Based on this discovery, we may one day be able to welcome other species into our homes, enjoying their tameness and curiosity from more than just a distance.
Read more: Why These 6 Animals Shouldn't Be Domesticated
Urban raccoons become trainers and their snouts become shorter
To find out whether the urban environment itself can trigger the domestication process of previously undomesticated animals, the research team focused on raccoons, which are an ideal species due to their widespread rural and urban populations. They analyzed nearly 20,000 images of raccoons from across the continental United States, submitted by citizen scientists and collected through iNaturalist.org.
A clear difference has emerged between raccoons that avoid human surroundings and raccoons that thrive in metropolitan areas. Like dogsUrban raccoons had shorter snouts, probably because more domesticated individuals were better tolerated by humans and were more successful in cities. However, what attracts them to our homes in the first place is our abundant and easily accessible garbage.
“Trash is actually a stimulus,” said senior study author Rafaela Lesch, assistant professor of biology at UALR, in her paper. news statement. “Everywhere people go, there's trash. Animals love our trash. It's an easy source of food. All they have to do is tolerate our presence, not be aggressive, and then they can eat whatever we throw away.”
Domestication as a natural process
The research team notes in their study that many people think of domestication as an “unnatural” process driven solely by humans. But animals can also independently adapt to human environments, seeking abundant resources and safety from predators. Over time, these conditions can lead to the appearance of traits associated with domestication, even without direct human involvement.
To thrive in this new niche, it helps for animals to adapt to humans, appearing more tame and less fearful. The researchers argue that these early stages of domestication are entirely due to natural selection.
Their observations are consistent with the neural crest domestication syndrome (NCDS) hypothesis, which proposes that animals undergoing domestication exhibit similar anatomical and morphological changes that begin early in embryonic development. These shifts often appear smaller. skullsdrooping ears, pigmentation changes and curly tails.
Raccoons may soon become popular pets
This project was primarily carried out by 16 students under the guidance of a biology professor who wanted to make his biometrics class more interesting.
“I wanted to teach this class in a way where students had their own data that they collected and analyzed,” Loesch said. “The benefit was that I didn't have to force students to do work. They were intrinsically motivated because they cared.”
Their work was ultimately strong enough to be published in a high-quality peer-reviewed journal, an impressive achievement for the young researchers and a great start to their scientific careers.
The team then hopes to replicate their study with other urban mammals, such as armadillos and opossums, to test whether similar domestication patterns emerge across species. However, their results on raccoons suggest that human presence itself may act as a driving force for evolution, and who knows, might eventually bring us a whole new pet.
Lesh added: “It would be appropriate and funny if our next domesticated species [were] raccoons. I think it would be funny if we called a domesticated version of the raccoon a garbage panda.”
Read more: The rise of cat domestication may have begun with ancient Egyptian sacrifices
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