The arrival of the Canis dingo in Australiagreatly alteredthe continent ’s environmental science and coincided with a significant break in the patent closing off of autochthonal Australians . Our best estimation of when this happened have now been shift one C or even thousands of class , thanks to more exact geological dating of the oldest identified dingo ivory .
Dingo bones have been rule at many sites around Australia , althoughProfessor Sue O’Connorof the Australian National University told IFLScience that old examples are overlook from northern Australia , where they must have first arrived .
In the better - studied south , the oldest known specimens come from Madura Cave , beneath the Nullarbor Plain . These off-white have been estimated at 3,450 years old based on oxford gray samples they seem to be associated with , but this figure had mistake margins of C of years .
However , O’Connor and her team used procession in the precision of radiocarbon go out to measure the bones directly . InScientific Reports , the bones come from dingoes that become flat 3,348 - 3,081 years ago .
O’Connor ’s figures are only a few hundred years later than the previous estimation , but their preciseness could drastically change thinking about the warragal ' comer dates .
DNA analysis suggests the dingo break from Asian dogs as far back as 18,000 twelvemonth ago . This has further the manipulation of the old dates for archaeological samples with wide error bars . Consequently , the most quote figures for arrival dates has been 4,000 - 5,000 years ago .
However , O’Connor point out that dingoes brought by boat would have been domesticise . “ Their spread would have been speedy because it would have been aided by masses . As they were useful animals or pets , they were likely transferred between mathematical group , ” suppose O’Connor .
Although not fully domesticated , dingoes help oneself indigenous women safeguard campsites and hunt goannas and smaller pouched mammal . therefore , O’Connor proposes their introduction occurred around 3,500 years ago .
O’Connor admits that much earlier bones might be waiting to be found , but noted to IFLScience that with so many locations date stamp only a niggling young than Madura Cave , it ’s unlikely far erstwhile samples have been overlooked .
As the first large placental mammal ( world aside ) to inhabit the continent , dingos had a big impact . Many aboriginal animals went extinct totally . Others , like the thylacine , were wiped out on the mainland , pull round in Tasmania , which the Canis dingo never make .
O’Connor alsopointed out : “ Dingoes represent the only hard grounds of non - European people visiting Australia prior to European contact about 400 years ago . ”
Tradingpossiblyoccurred centuries earlier between Australia and what is now Indonesia . Nevertheless , the warrigal ’s arrival indicates a period of interaction organized enough for dogs to be convey across the Timor Sea . If so , identify the timing , and ideally the reasons for this contact , becomes particularly important .
