This page gives a list of domesticated animals,
also including a list of
animals which are or may be currently undergoing the process of domestication and animals that have an extensive relationship with humans beyond simple predation. This includes species which are semi-domesticated, undomesticated but
captive-bred on a commercial scale, or commonly wild-caught, at least occasionally captive-bred, and
tameable. In order to be considered fully domesticated, most species have undergone significant
genetic,
behavioural and
morphological changes from their wild ancestors, while others have changed very little from their wild ancestors despite hundreds or thousands of years of potential
selective breeding. A number of factors determine how quickly any changes may occur in a species, but there is not always a desire to improve a species from its wild form. Domestication is a gradual process, so there is no precise moment in the history of a given species when it can be considered to have become fully domesticated.
Zooarchaeology has identified three classes of animal domesticates:
#
Pets (dogs, cats, ferrets, hamsters, etc.)
#
Livestock (cattle, sheep, pigs, goats, etc.)
#
Beasts of burden
A working animal is an animal, usually domesticated, that is kept by humans and trained to perform tasks instead of being slaughtered to harvest animal products. Some are used for their physical strength (e.g. oxen and draft horses) or for t ...
(horses, camels, donkeys, etc.)
Domesticated animals
Tame and partially domesticated animals
Due to the somewhat unclear outlines of what precisely constitutes
domestication, there are some species that may or may not be fully domesticated. There are also some species that are extensively used or kept as pets by humans, but are not significantly altered from wild-type animals. Most animals on this second table are at least somewhat altered from wild-type animals due to their extensive interactions with humans, albeit not to the point that they are regarded as distinct forms (therefore, no separate wild ancestors are noted). Many of them could not be released into the wild, or are in some way dependent on humans.
Taxonomical groupings
The categories used in the Taxon group column are:
*1a: ''
Artiodactyla'' except ''
Bovidae'', 1b: ''
Bovidae'', 1c: ''
Carnivora
Carnivora is a Clade, monophyletic order of Placentalia, placental mammals consisting of the most recent common ancestor of all felidae, cat-like and canidae, dog-like animals, and all descendants of that ancestor. Members of this group are f ...
'', 1d: ''
Rodentia'', 1e: ''Other
mammal
Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...
s''
*2a: ''
Anseriformes
Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which in ...
'', 2b: ''
Galliformes'', 2c: ''
Columbiformes'', 2d: ''
Passeriformes'', 2e: ''
Psittaciformes'', 2f: ''
Palaeognathae
Palaeognathae (; ) is a infraclass of birds, called paleognaths, within the class Aves of the clade Archosauria. It is one of the two extant infraclasses of birds, the other being Neognathae, both of which form Neornithes. Palaeognathae contai ...
'' , 2g: ''Other
birds''
*3a: ''
Serpentes'', 3b: ''
Lacertilia
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia althou ...
'', 3c: ''
Testudines'', 3d: ''Other
reptile
Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, squamates (lizards and snakes) and rhynchocephalians ( ...
s''
*4a: ''
Anura'', 4b: ''Other
amphibian
Amphibians are tetrapod, four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the Class (biology), class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terres ...
s''
*5a: ''
Cyprinidae
Cyprinidae is a family of freshwater fish commonly called the carp or minnow family. It includes the carps, the true minnows, and relatives like the barbs and barbels. Cyprinidae is the largest and most diverse fish family and the largest verte ...
'', 5b: ''Other
fish''
*6a: ''
Hymenoptera
Hymenoptera is a large order (biology), order of insects, comprising the sawfly, sawflies, wasps, bees, and ants. Over 150,000 living species of Hymenoptera have been described, in addition to over 2,000 extinct ones. Many of the species are Par ...
'', 6b: ''Other
insects'', 6c: ''Other
arthropods''
*7a: ''
Mollusca
Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is esti ...
'', 7b: ''
Annelid
The annelids (Annelida , from Latin ', "little ring"), also known as the segmented worms, are a large phylum, with over 22,000 extant species including ragworms, earthworms, and leeches. The species exist in and have adapted to various ecol ...
a'', 7c: ''Other
animals''
See also
*
List of domesticated plants
This is a list of plants that have been domesticated by humans. The list includes individual plant species identified by their common names as well as larger formal and informal botanical categories which include at least some domesticated individ ...
*
List of domesticated fungi and microorganisms
Many fungi and microorganisms have been domesticated by humans for use in food production, medicine, and research. The following is a list of domesticated fungi and microorganisms:
Food
Research and medicine
Industry
See also
* List ...
References
{{Authority control
Domesticated animals
Domesticated animals