Ancient genomes of Sitka black-tailed deer show evidence for early postglacial dispersal along the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America.
11 affiliations
- 1Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA. [email protected].
- 2Biology Department, Trent University, Peterborough, Canada. [email protected].
- 3Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA.
- 4Department of Earth Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA.
- 5Hakai Institute, Heriot Bay, British Columbia, Canada.
- 6Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, USA.
- 7Terrestrial Wildlife Branch, Arizona Game and Fish Department, Phoenix, AZ, USA.
- 8Blackpowder Consulting, Thorne Bay, AK, USA.
- 9Far Northwestern Institute of Art and Science, Anchorage, AK, USA.
- 10Department of Earth Sciences, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD, USA.
- 11Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA. [email protected].
Abstract
Background
The Pacific Northwestern region of North America is inhabited by two distinct subspecies of black-tailed deer, Columbian (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus) and Sitka (O. h. sitkensis) black-tailed deer, which exhibit a complex evolutionary history shaped by survival in glacial refugia, postglacial expansion, incomplete lineage sorting, and recent introgression. These dynamics make them an ideal system for examining population responses to past climate change. However, limited temporal sampling in previous genetic studies has obscured the timing and mechanisms of postglacial dispersal, and the divergence between the two black-tailed deer subspecies remains unresolved.Results
We analyze genome-scale data from ancient and modern deer spanning the last 13,500 years to reconstruct the evolutionary history of Sitka black-tailed deer in Southeast Alaska. Fossil and genomic evidence supports a primary postglacial expansion from a southern refugium, with asynchronous deglaciation and fluctuating sea levels along the Pacific Northwest Coast influencing northward colonization. Early Southeast Alaska samples (~ 9.2-8.5 cal kyr B.P.) contain mule deer mitochondrial haplotypes, indicating past contact or incomplete lineage sorting, while later individuals (< 6 cal kyr B.P.) carry Sitka black-tailed deer haplotypes, suggesting lineage turnover following mid-Holocene climatic cooling.Conclusions
Our results reject the hypothesis of a distinct northern refugium for Sitka black-tailed deer and instead support postglacial divergence from a shared black-tailed deer refugium south of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet. The asynchronous retreat of ice and dynamic sea-level history fostered repeated dispersal pulses, localized isolation, and secondary contact, shaping the present-day genetic and morphological diversity of O. hemionus.
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BibTeX
@article{coelho2026ancient,
title = {{Ancient genomes of Sitka black-tailed deer show evidence for early postglacial dispersal along the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America.}},
author = {Flavio Augusto da Silva Coelho and Crystal M Tomlin and Karlee K Prince and Duncan McLaren and Daryl Fedje and Emily Latch and James R Heffelfinger and James F Baichtal and Sandra L Talbot and Timothy H Heaton and Charlotte Lindqvist},
journal = {Genome biology},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1186/s13059-026-04233-5},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42972562},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Ancient genomes of Sitka black-tailed deer show evidence for early postglacial dispersal along the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America.
AU - Flavio Augusto da Silva Coelho
AU - Crystal M Tomlin
AU - Karlee K Prince
AU - Duncan McLaren
AU - Daryl Fedje
AU - Emily Latch
AU - James R Heffelfinger
AU - James F Baichtal
AU - Sandra L Talbot
AU - Timothy H Heaton
AU - Charlotte Lindqvist
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/05
JO - Genome biology
DO - 10.1186/s13059-026-04233-5
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42972562
AB - Background The Pacific Northwestern region of North America is inhabited by two distinct subspecies of black-tailed deer, Columbian (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus) and Sitka (O. h. sitkensis) black-tailed deer, which exhibit a complex evolutionary history shaped by survival in glacial refugia, postglacial expansion, incomplete lineage sorting, and recent introgression. These dynamics make them an ideal system for examining population responses to past climate change. However, limited temporal sampling in previous genetic studies has obscured the timing and mechanisms of postglacial dispersal, and the divergence between the two black-tailed deer subspecies remains unresolved.Results We analyze genome-scale data from ancient and modern deer spanning the last 13,500 years to reconstruct the evolutionary history of Sitka black-tailed deer in Southeast Alaska. Fossil and genomic evidence supports a primary postglacial expansion from a southern refugium, with asynchronous deglaciation and fluctuating sea levels along the Pacific Northwest Coast influencing northward colonization. Early Southeast Alaska samples (~ 9.2-8.5 cal kyr B.P.) contain mule deer mitochondrial haplotypes, indicating past contact or incomplete lineage sorting, while later individuals (< 6 cal kyr B.P.) carry Sitka black-tailed deer haplotypes, suggesting lineage turnover following mid-Holocene climatic cooling.Conclusions Our results reject the hypothesis of a distinct northern refugium for Sitka black-tailed deer and instead support postglacial divergence from a shared black-tailed deer refugium south of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet. The asynchronous retreat of ice and dynamic sea-level history fostered repeated dispersal pulses, localized isolation, and secondary contact, shaping the present-day genetic and morphological diversity of O. hemionus.
SN - 1474-7596
SN - 1474-760X
ER -