Extinct yak relative discovered from DNA in Denisova cave
Researchers have identified a previously unknown extinct species of bovine, dubbed 'yak X,' using DNA extracted from bone fragments in Siberia's Denisova cave. The species likely coexisted with ancient humans before going extinct around 30,000 years ago.
Why it matters
This discovery provides new insights into megafaunal evolution and the interactions between ancient human species and their environment.
Excavations in Denisova cave in Siberia
A newly identified species of bovine, currently known only as yak X, was probably hunted by ancient humans including Neanderthals, Denisovans and our own species, say the researchers who discovered it.
“It’s not every day that one discovers a previously unknown extinct megafaunal species,” says Love Dalén at Stockholm University, Sweden.
He and his colleagues began studying bone fragments recovered from Denisova cave, in the foothills of the Altai mountains in Siberia, Russia, in the hope of learning about bison evolution. The cave is most famous as the place where the mysterious Denisovans were first identified from a finger bone found there.
“But it turned out that nearly all bone fragments in the cave had DNA that didn’t match any living bovine species, nor did it match the extinct steppe bison or aurochs,” says Dalén.
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