The genome and diet of a 35,000‐year‐old Canis lupus specimen from the Paleolithic painted cave, Chauvet‐Pont d'Arc, France

A 35,000-year-old coprolite from the Chauvet-Pont-d'Arc Cave, France, reveals insights into the diet and genome of an extinct wolf lineage. Radiocarbon dating confirmed its age aligns with Paleolithic artwork and cave bear remains in the site. High-throughput DNA sequencing identified canid DNA as dominant, alongside traces of the extinct cave bear, indicating the coprolite was from a wolf that consumed cave bear tissue. Mitochondrial genome analysis placed this wolf within an extinct European lineage closely related to coeval Belgian wolves, while nuclear genome data confirmed it was female and more closely affiliated with gray wolves than other wild canids or dogs. The study suggests that predation on cave bears likely drove the wolf's intrusion into deep cave sectors, offering new perspectives on the paleoecology of this significant UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Elalouf, J.-M., Palacio, P., Bon, C., Berthonaud, V., Maksud, F., Stafford, T. W., & Hitte, C. (2022). The genome and diet of a 35,000‐year‐old Canis lupus specimen from the Paleolithic painted cave, Chauvet‐Pont d’Arc, France. Ecology and Evolution, 12(8). Portico. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.9238