The first complete genome of the extinct European wild ass (Equus hemionus hydruntinus) (original) (raw)

We present paleogenomes of three morphologically-unidentified Anatolian equids dating to the 1stmillennium BCE, sequenced to coverages of 0.6-6.4X. Mitochondrial DNA haplotypes of the Anatolian individuals clustered with those ofEquus hydruntinus(orEquus hemionus hydruntinus), the extinct European wild ass. The Anatolian wild ass whole genome profiles fall outside the genomic diversity of other extant and past Asiatic wild ass (E.hemionus) lineages. These observations strongly suggest that the three Anatolian wild asses representE.hydruntinus, making them the latest recorded survivors of this lineage, about a millennium later than the latest observations in the zooarchaeological record. Comparative genomic analyses suggest thatE.hydruntinuswas a sister clade to all ancient and present-dayE.hemionuslineages, representing an early split. We also find indication of gene flow between hydruntines and Middle Eastern wild asses. Analyses of genome-wide heterozygosity and runs of homozygosi...