A Paleogenomic Perspective on the Evolutionary History of Ice Age Equids

The evolution of equids – modern horses, zebras, and donkeys – is a classic example of macroevolution inferred from the fossil record. Although the relationships between living equid species are well understood, substantial disagreement remains between morphology and genetics regarding the placement and taxonomy of their recently extinct kin. Here, we applied a paleogenomic approach to determine the placement of an extinct group of poorly understood, late Pleistocene equids. Based on whole mitochondrial and low coverage nuclear genomes, we demonstrate the robust, novel phylogenetic placement of this taxon. We explore the implications of this placement on our understanding of recently extinct equid evolution and fossil equid systematics.