Overview
- Ancient DNA from two canid bones in Stora Förvar cave identified gray wolves with no dog ancestry.
- Stable‑isotope signatures matched the marine diets of island inhabitants, consistent with human provisioning.
- The wolves were smaller than mainland populations, and one genome showed exceptionally low genetic diversity.
- Osteology revealed a limb pathology in a Bronze Age individual that would have limited mobility, suggesting care.
- Using 19th‑century museum material, the peer‑reviewed study reframes prehistoric human–wolf relations and was published in PNAS on November 24.