title: Rise and fall of the Beringian steppe bison.
abstract: The widespread extinctions of large mammals at the end of the Pleistocene epoch have often been attributed to the depredations of humans; here we present genetic evidence that questions this assumption. We used ancient DNA and Bayesian techniques to reconstruct a detailed genetic history of bison throughout the late Pleistocene and Holocene epochs. Our analyses depict a large diverse population living throughout Beringia until around 37,000 years before the present, when the population's genetic diversity began to decline dramatically. The timing of this decline correlates with environmental changes associated with the onset of the last glacial cycle, whereas archaeological evidence does not support the presence of large populations of humans in Eastern Beringia until more than 15,000 years later.
authors.affiliation: Henry Wellcome Ancient Biomolecules Centre, Oxford University, South Parks Road, Oxford OX13PS, UK.
authors.forename: Beth
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Shapiro
authors.forename: Alexei J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Drummond
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rambaut
authors.forename: Michael C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Wilson
authors.forename: Paul E
authors.initials: PE
authors.lastname: Matheus
authors.forename: Andrei V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Sher
authors.forename: Oliver G
authors.initials: OG
authors.lastname: Pybus
authors.forename: M Thomas P
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Gilbert
authors.forename: Ian
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Barnes
authors.forename: Jonas
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Binladen
authors.forename: Eske
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Willerslev
authors.forename: Anders J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Hansen
authors.forename: Gennady F
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: Baryshnikov
authors.forename: James A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Burns
authors.forename: Sergei
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Davydov
authors.forename: Jonathan C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Driver
authors.forename: Duane G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Froese
authors.forename: C Richard
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Harington
authors.forename: Grant
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Keddie
authors.forename: Pavel
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kosintsev
authors.forename: Michael L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Kunz
authors.forename: Larry D
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.forename: Robert O
authors.initials: RO
authors.lastname: Stephenson
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Storer
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tedford
authors.forename: Sergei
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zimov
authors.forename: Alan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cooper
mesh_terms: D000413:Alaska; D000818:Animals; D001499:Bayes Theorem; D016164:Bison / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics; D002170:Canada; D002681:China; D002980:Climate; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000235:genetics; D004777:Environment; D005580:Fossils; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005828:Genetics, Population; D006802:Human Activities; D006801:Humans; D009656:North America; D010802:Phylogeny; D011157:Population Dynamics; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D013995:Time
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial