Domestication

Domestication is a long process where humans or other animals take care of and control another species to get things like food or help from them. This relationship helps both sides and happens slowly over many generations through trial and error. Animals that are domesticated usually become less aggressive, and plants often grow bigger seeds or keep their seeds from scattering.

The first animal humans domesticated was the dog at least 15,000 years ago. Other animals like goats, sheep, and cows were brought under human care around 11,000 years ago. Birds such as the chicken were first domesticated in East Asia at least 3,250 years ago, and the horse was domesticated around 5,500 years ago in central Asia for work.

Plants were also domesticated beginning around 13,000–11,000 years ago. Crops like wheat and barley were first grown in the Middle East, while Indigenous peoples in the Americas started farming crops such as maize and potatoes. Rice was first domesticated in China about 9,000 years ago.

Some insects, like leafcutter ants and fungus-growing termites, have also domesticated fungi, using them as a food source. These relationships show how many different kinds of life have found ways to help each other.

Definitions

Domestication is a long-term relationship in which humans take care of another living thing, like an animal or plant, to get useful resources such as food or help. This process creates benefits for both sides. It is different from simply taming one animal, as it involves many generations and changes in how the species behaves.

Over time, domesticated animals often show changes like being less fearful, having different colors, or smaller teeth. Even some insects, like leafcutter ants, have taken care of fungi in a similar way. Domestication is a slow process that happens over many years and in many places.

Cause and timing

Further information: Neolithic transition

The domestication of animals and plants by humans began because of big changes in the climate and environment after the Last Glacial Maximum. These changes made it hard to get food just by hunting and gathering. The very first animal to be domesticated was the dog, at least 15,000 years ago. A very cold and dry time called the Younger Dryas happened 12,900 years ago, which made humans work harder to find food, but it didn’t help much for farming yet.

When the climate got warmer about 11,700 years ago, starting in the Holocene, humans began to domesticate small numbers of animals and plants. This gave them more food. The first farms with crops like wheat and barley appeared, and people began to raise animals like goats, pigs, and sheep instead of just hunting them. Over thousands of years, many more animals and plants were domesticated all over the world.

Animals

The domestication of animals is the relationship between humans and other animals where humans care for and control the animals. Charles Darwin studied the differences between domestic animals and their wild ancestors in his book. He noticed that some traits made animals easier to live with, like being less aggressive.

Domesticated animals often have certain traits, such as being smaller, having floppy ears, or having smaller brains. These traits help make the animals easier for humans to care for. Animals that are good candidates for domestication often have social structures that make them easier to manage, can bond easily with humans, and can adapt to new environments.

Further information: List of domesticated animals

Mammals were domesticated in different ways. Some animals, like dogs and cats, lived near humans because they found food around human settlements. Others, like sheep and cattle, were kept for food. Some animals, like horses, were used for work and transportation.

Dogs were the first animals to be domesticated, and they were chosen for their behaviors. Birds, such as chickens and ducks, were domesticated for meat and eggs. Insects like silkworms and honey bees were domesticated for their products, like silk and honey.

Main articles: Poultry and Aviculture

Domesticated birds are mainly raised for food, such as chickens, turkeys, ducks, and geese. Other birds, like songbirds and parrots, are kept for pleasure. Pigeons have been used for communication because of their ability to find their way home.

The wild ancestor of chickens is the red junglefowl from Southeast Asia. Research shows that chickens were likely first domesticated in this region.

Two insects, the silkworm and the western honey bee, have been domesticated for thousands of years. Silkworms are raised for silk, and honey bees are raised for honey and to help pollinate crops.

Other invertebrates have also been domesticated for research, food, or products. This includes fruit flies for scientific studies and snails for food.

Plants

Further information: History of agriculture and List of domesticated plants

Humans started gathering wild plants like wheat and barley thousands of years ago before they began to grow them on purpose. Around 13,000 to 11,000 years ago, people in West Asia began to plant and take care of these plants. They grew crops like wheat, barley, lentils, and flax. Other plants were later grown in different parts of the world, such as rice in East Asia and maize in the Americas.

Domestication of plants happened slowly over many years and in many places. It involved trying different things and learning what worked best. Unlike animals, where changes were mostly in behavior, plants changed in how they grow and produce seeds. For example, wild wheat drops its seeds when it’s ready, but domesticated wheat keeps its seeds on the stem, making it easier for people to harvest. This change happened because early farmers picked plants with this trait, not knowing exactly why, but it made harvesting easier.

Domesticated plants look and act differently from their wild cousins. They might have bigger seeds, taste better, or be easier to harvest. They often lose some natural defenses, like thorns or bitter tastes, which makes them rely on people to protect them. These changes happened because farmers chose plants with traits they liked, such as sweeter fruit or more grains.

When plants are domesticated, their genes change in important ways. For example, rice plants that taste different have a small change in their DNA that affects how they grow. Similar changes happened in other crops like potatoes and coconuts. These genetic changes help make plants better for people to grow and eat.

Fungi

Further information: List of domesticated fungi and microorganisms

Some types of fungi have been tamed and cared for by humans to help make food and useful products. For example, the mushroom called Agaricus bisporus is grown widely to be eaten. Yeast, a type of fungus named Saccharomyces cerevisiae, has been used for thousands of years to help make beer, wine, and to make bread rise. Other fungi, like Penicillium, are used to help make cheeses taste better and to create medicines such as antibiotics.

Effects

When animals are chosen for certain traits, it can affect their genes in ways we might not expect. For example, animals that live close to humans can sometimes spread diseases to people. Cows have caused illnesses like measles and tuberculosis, while pigs and ducks can spread influenza. This happens because when animals and people live together closely, diseases can jump between them.

Domestication has also changed how humans live together. Some thinkers believe that before domestication, people lived more peacefully with nature. They say that taking care of animals led to new social groups and changes in how people treated each other and the world around them. Others argue that caring for animals has helped us grow food and stay safe, but it has also changed natural habitats and sometimes hurt wild animals.

Domestication can also affect the genes of animals and plants. When we choose only certain animals or plants to breed, their genetic diversity can decrease. This means there are fewer differences in their genes, which can sometimes lead to health problems. However, in some plants like barley and maize, genetic diversity didn’t drop quickly at first but changed slowly over time.

Domestication by insects

Some insects, like ambrosia beetles, leafcutter ants, and fungus-growing termites, have formed special relationships with fungi. These insects grow fungi to use as food. Ambrosia beetles dig tunnels in trees and grow fungi there, which provide them with nutrients. Leafcutter ants cut leaves and take them back to their nests to feed their fungi. Some termites also grow fungi on special structures made from their own waste, which they then eat.

Gallery of the ambrosia beetle _[Xylosandrus crassiusculus](/wiki/Xylosandrus_crassiusculus)_ split open, with pupae and black fungus. The fungus decomposes materials in the wood, providing food for the beetles.



Leafcutter ants _[Atta cephalotes](/wiki/Atta_cephalotes)_ carrying discs of leaf material back to their nest to feed to their domesticated fungus



Inside the nest of the fungus-cultivating termite _Ancistrotermes_



_[Termitomyces heimii](/wiki/Termitomyces_heimii)_ growing on 'comb' inside a termite mound



_Termitomyces_ fungi are mutually dependent on [Macrotermitinae](/wiki/Macrotermitinae) termites for their survival.