RT Journal Article
T1 The genomic history of Iberian horses since the last Ice Age
A1 Lira Garrido, Jaime
A1 Tressières, Gaétan
A1 Chauvey, Loreleï
A1 Schiavinato, Stéphanie
A1 Calvière-Tonasso, Laure
A1 Seguin-Orlando, Andaine
A1 Southon, John
A1 Shapiro, Beth
A1 Bataille, Clément
A1 Pablos Fernández, Adrián
AB Horses have inhabited Iberia (present-day Spain and Portugal) since the Middle Pleistocene, shaping a complex history in the region. Iberia has been proposed as a potential domestication centre and is renowned for producing world-class bloodlines. Here, we generate genome-wide sequence data from 87 ancient horse specimens (median coverage = 0.97X) from Iberia and the broader Mediterranean to reconstruct their genetic history over the last ~26,000 years. Here, we report that wild horses of the divergent IBE lineage inhabited Iberia from the Late Pleistocene, while domesticated DOM2 horses, native from the Pontic-Caspian steppes, already arrived ~1850 BCE. Admixture dating suggests breeding practices involving continued wild restocking until at least ~350 BCE, with IBE disappearing shortly after. Patterns of genetic affinity highlight the far-reaching influence of Iberian bloodlines across Europe and north Africa during the Iron Age and Antiquity, with continued impact extending thereafter, particularly during the colonization of the Americas.
PB Nature Research
YR 2025
FD 2025-08-02
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/125439
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/125439
LA eng
NO Lira Garrido, J., Tressières, G., Chauvey, L., Schiavinato, S., Calvière-Tonasso, L., Seguin-Orlando, A., Southon, J., Shapiro, B., Bataille, C., Birgel, J., Wagner, S., Khan, N., Liu, X., Rodanés, J. M., Picazo Millán, J. V., Giralt, J., Alonso, N., Aguilera, I., Orsingher, A., … Orlando, L. (2025). The genomic history of Iberian horses since the last Ice Age. Nature Communications, 16(1), 7098. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-62266-z
NO European Research Council
NO CNRS/Université Paul Sabatier
NO European Union’s Horizon 2020
NO Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación
NO Junta de Castilla-La Mancha
NO Generalitat de Catalunya
NO Gobierno de Cantabria
NO MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033
DS Docta Complutense
RD 30 mar 2026