Mice as stowaways? Colonization history of Danish striped field mice

Abstract

Species from the steppe region of Eastern Europe likely colonized northwestern Europe in connection with agriculture after 6500 BP. The striped field mouse ( Apodemus agrarius Pallas, 1783), is a steppe-derived species often found in human crops. It is common on the southern Danish islands of Lolland and Falster, which have been isolated from mainland Europe since approximately 10 300–8000 BP. Thus, this species could have been brought in with humans in connection with agriculture, or it could be an earlier natural invader. We sequenced 86 full mitochondrial genomes from the northwestern range of the striped field mouse, analysed phylogenetic relationships and estimated divergence time. The results supported human-induced colonization of Denmark in the Subatlantic or Subboreal period. A newly discovered population from Central Jutland in Denmark diverged from Falster approximately 100–670 years ago, again favouring human introduction. One individual from Sweden turned out to be a recent introduction from Central Jutland.