Patterns of East Asian pig domestication, migration, and turnover revealed by modern and ancient DNA

TLDR

Agricultural economies based on domestic animals arose independently worldwide, driving population growth and human migration, yet the earliest phases of these events remain poorly understood. We analyzed over 1,500 modern and 18 ancient pig DNA sequences from East Asia to assess genetic continuity between modern and ancient Chinese domestic pigs. The study identifies independent domestication events in China and five other East Asian regions, introduces the concept of cryptic domestication, documents numerous wild boar populations lacking maternal contribution to modern stocks, and offers a comprehensive view of pig evolution that informs hypotheses on early farmer dispersal.

Abstract

The establishment of agricultural economies based upon domestic animals began independently in many parts of the world and led to both increases in human population size and the migration of people carrying domestic plants and animals. The precise circumstances of the earliest phases of these events remain mysterious given their antiquity and the fact that subsequent waves of migrants have often replaced the first. Through the use of more than 1,500 modern (including 151 previously uncharacterized specimens) and 18 ancient (representing six East Asian archeological sites) pig ( Sus scrofa ) DNA sequences sampled across East Asia, we provide evidence for the long-term genetic continuity between modern and ancient Chinese domestic pigs. Although the Chinese case for independent pig domestication is supported by both genetic and archaeological evidence, we discuss five additional (and possibly) independent domestications of indigenous wild boar populations: one in India, three in peninsular Southeast Asia, and one off the coast of Taiwan. Collectively, we refer to these instances as “cryptic domestication,” given the current lack of corroborating archaeological evidence. In addition, we demonstrate the existence of numerous populations of genetically distinct and widespread wild boar populations that have not contributed maternal genetic material to modern domestic stocks. The overall findings provide the most complete picture yet of pig evolution and domestication in East Asia, and generate testable hypotheses regarding the development and spread of early farmers in the Far East.