Researchers discover origins of donkey

Through their DNA, the animals are telling their history themselves

The horse has cemented its place in history as a companion animal, athlete, mode of transportation and more.

Sometimes overlooked, the donkey has its own unique and significant history, which tells how it evolved right alongside humans. New research reveals the journey donkeys took toward domestication and the key role they played in daily human life dating back thousands of years.

A global team of 49 researchers sequenced the genome of donkeys from regions around the world. To tell the story of the donkey, researchers analyzed the genome of existing populations as well as DNA from donkey fossils.