Who let the dogs in? A review of the recent genetic evidence for the introduction of the dingo to Australia and implications for the movement of people

Abstract

The phylogenetic origin of the dingo ('Canis dingo') is an enigma. Introduced to Australia during the Holocene, debate continues regarding the exact timing of its introduction and whether it was by early agriculturalists, hunter-gatherers or sea-faring traders. The expanding array of genetic research on both dog domestication and dingoes adds fuel to this debate. Here we synthesise recent genetic studies of dingo origins. We then evaluate a list of potential groups who could have been responsible for their introduction, and suggest that Toalean or other hunter-gatherers from south Sulawesi were the likely suspects. We conclude with suggestions for further archaeological and genetic research that have the potential to clarify not just the origin of the dingo, but the movement of people around Oceania (here broadly defined as the entire insular region between South East Asia and Australia), and by extrapolation, aspects of Holocene cultural change.