Ancient and modern steps during the domestication of guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus L.)

Abstract

To test whether there are differences between living lineages of domestic guinea pigs Cavia porcellus, we studied 118 specimens from six breeds collected along six Andean countries as well as 15 from the wild cavy species (Cavia tschudii). The mean weight and body length of 15 adult wild cavies (295 AE 31 g, 242 AE 8.3 mm) were significantly smaller than 25 creole guinea pigs from Bolivia and Chile (639 AE 157 g, 287 AE 23.7 mm, respectively). Eighteen laboratory/pet guinea pigs (including the English Pirbright breed) were also smaller (900 AE 173 g, 308 AE 21 mm) than 25 improved ones from Peru (Tamborada breed, 1241 AE 75.4 g, 317 AE 12 mm) and Ecuador (Auqui breed, 1138 AE 65.5 g, 307 AE 8 mm). Similar size increases appeared in the first axis of a principal component analysis of six skeletal measurements, recovering 84% of total variation. Phylogenetic and haplotype analyses of complete cytochrome b gene sequences consistently joined all 22 domestic individuals (13 shared unambiguous substitutions, 100% bootstrap in 1000 replicates), probably from a single first ancient domestication in the western Andes. Six laboratory/ pet sequences were also joined within a common branch (six shared substitutions, 96% bootstrap), probably from a documented European second phase. By contrast, those from improved Auqui joined a northern creole subgroup (one shared substitution, 84% bootstrap), and those from Nativa and improved Tamborada clustered together and with a southern creole subgroup (four shared substitutions, 86% bootstrap); this suggests at least two independent modern events during a more complex third phase, producing two improved guinea pigs selected for size and meat. Cavia tschudii sequences showed some unexpected geographic variation.

Andean Land Use and Biodiversity: Humanized Landscapes in a Time of Change

“…The availability of rice selected for different flooding regimes permits farming on a wide variety of terrains with dry land, wetland, or controlled paddy conditions (Carney, 1991;Khush, 1997). The diversity extant among domesticated guinea pigs that originate from the Andes is useful in laboratories around the world (Spotorno et al, 2006). This kind of agrobiodiversity is considered highly threatened, as much of it is maintained because of agricultural practices supported by cultural norms that may change in the future (Brush, 2000;Young, 2002).…”

New archaeozoological evidence for the introduction of the guinea pig to Europe

“…The systematics of the genus Cavia has recently been undergoing revision as the number of species occurring in the wild needed further clarification, as well as the origin of the domesticated form (Woods, 2005). The commonly held view (Herre and Röhrs, 1990, 36) that the wild ancestor of the guinea pig is Cavia aperea, has been contradicted by recent molecular analyses (Dunnum and Salazar-Bravo, 2010, 384;Spotorno et al, 2006Spotorno et al, , 2007. It is now believed that the most likely ancestor is Cavia tschudii tschudii.…”

Wild genius - domestic fool? Spatial learning abilities of wild and domestic guinea pigs

“…In the 16 th century domestic guinea pigs were brought to Europe where they were subjected to further selective breeding leading to the common domestic form that is nowadays used as pets and laboratory animals [17]. Their wild relative, the wild cavy ( Cavia aperea ) still is one of the most common and widespread rodents of South America [18-20].…”