Domestication

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Domestication is a multi-generational mutualistic relationship in which an animal species, such as humans or leafcutter ants, takes over control and care of another species, such as sheep or fungi, to obtain from them a steady supply of resources, such as meat, milk, or labor. The process is gradual and geographically diffuse, based on trial and error. Domestication affects genes for behavior in animals, making them less aggressive. In plants, domestication affects genes for morphology, such as increasing seed size and stopping the shattering of cereal seedheads. Such changes both make domesticated organisms easier to handle and reduce their ability to survive in the wild. Terrestrial vertebrates are the first animals to be domesticated by humans, with the earliest domestication of vertebrates being the domestication of dogs from wolves, who diverged from their wild relatives and developed a commensal relationship with Upper Paleolithic/Mesolithic humans at least 15,000 years ago during...

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