Scientists have uncovered ancient wolf remains on a small Baltic island where wolves could only have been brought by humans. These animals weren’t dogs, but true wolves that ate the same marine food as the people living there and showed signs of isolation and possible care. One even survived with an injured limb that would have made hunting difficult. The findings suggest humans once kept and managed wolves in ways far more complex than previously imagined.

Researchers have uncovered ancient wolf remains on a small, isolated island in the Baltic Sea, a location the animals could not have reached without human help. The findings point to a surprising possibility that prehistoric people deliberately brought grey wolves to the island and may have kept or managed them. The research was published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and led by scientists from the Francis Crick Institute, Stockholm University, the University of Aberdeen, and the University of East Anglia