New research into the red fox
suggests a major difference in the evolution of the carnivore
over the past 400,000 years in North America versus the Eurasian
animal.
The study of the fox genomes by researchers at the
University of California at Davis found that the first red foxes
originated in the Middle East before spreading their relatives
across Eurasia to Siberia, over the Bering Strait, and into
North America.
Lead researcher Mark Statham, an assistant project
scientist with the UC Davis Veterinary Genetics Laboratory, said
the findings have implications for human ancestry and evolution.
The study said that the North American red fox evolved over
400,000 years into a new species distinct from its Old World
ancestors.
"That small group that got across the Bering Strait went on
to colonize a whole continent and are on their own evolutionary
path," Statham said.
According to previous studies on the red fox that had
examined only the X chromosome, or the maternal line, the
regional foxes were more closely interconnected.
The new research, however, includes an investigation of the
Y chromosome or the paternal line and discovered the differences
based on region.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
