Wolf and Dog: What Differences exist?

A morphological study of the skeletal specimen of Canis lupus L. from an archeological dig of Agnano (Pisa) (Fauna Laboratory, Department of Archaeological Sciences, University of Pi-sa, Italy) that is chronologically placed in the Wurm period (last glaciation) was done to perform an anatomical comparison between this wild ancestor and osteological specimens of Canis familiaris L. present in the Veterinary Anatomy Museum (University of Pisa). Marked morphological differ-ences in the splanchnocranium (nasal bone, zygomatic arch and orbital angle), neurocranium (sag-ittal crest) and temporomandibular joint (due to different developments of the masticatory mus-cles) are highlighted on the wolf specimen compared to those in the domestic dog specimens pre-sent in Museum. The appendicular skeletal bones of the wolf show anatomical features similar to those of dog bone specimens, confirming their belonging to the same family (Canidae). This result confirms that domestication has almost exclusively affected the anatomical features of the skull that have changed due to the difference in dietary approach between wolves and dogs.