Mitochondrial Phylogeography of Wild Boars, Sus scrofa, from Asia Minor: Endemic Lineages, Natural Immigration, Historical Anthropogenic Translocations, and Possible Introgression of Domestic Pigs

Türkiye represents an important biogeographic region connecting Southeast Europe with Southwest Asia, where pig domestication began in the western Palearctic. We studied the phylogenetic relationships and spatial distribution of new and published mitochondrial D-loop sequences of wild boars from Türkiye, other parts of the Middle East, and from around the world to understand migration patterns within Asia Minor and other parts of the Middle East as well as across the Bosphorus/Sea of Marmara/Dardanelles, a current migration barrier to Southwest Europe. Our phylogenetic (ML, BI) and spatial (Geneland) analyses revealed haplotypes both endemic to Anatolia and with a wider distribution in the Middle East as well as European (E1) lineages. The latter suggested possible rare immigration into Anatolia at present times and prehistorical/historical anthropogenic translocations of wild boars or pigs, such as during the pre-Hellenic, Roman, and Byzantine periods or during the European crusades, and subsequent introgression into Anatolian wild boars. Import of pigs with E1 haplotypes and introgression into wild boars during the medieval Empire of Trebizond particularly by Italian merchants or settlers, is also suggested. Anatolian lineages that may have formed the basis of the archaic domestication process of pigs in the western Palearctic are discussed.