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During the Late Pleistocene, narrow-headed voles (Lasiopodomys gregalis) inhabited Eurasia’s vast territories, frequently becoming the dominant small mammal species among steppe-tundra communities. We investigated the relationship between this species’ European and Asiatic populations by sequencing the mtDNA genomes of two extant specimens from Russia and 10 individuals from five Central European sites, dated to the post-LGM period. Phylogenetic analyses based on a large portion of mtDNA genomes highly supported the positioning of L. gregalis within Arvicolinae. The phylogeny based on mtDNA cytochrome b sequences revealed a deep divergence of European narrow-headed voles from Asiatic ones and their sister position against the extant L. gregalis and L. raddei. The divergence of the European lineage was estimated to a minimum 230 thousand years ago. This suggest, contrary to the current biogeographic hypotheses, that during the interglacial periods narrow-headed vole did not retreat from Europe but survived the unfavourable conditions within the refugial areas. Based on this result, we propose to establish a cryptic species status for the Late Pleistocene European narrow-headed vole and to name this taxon Lasiopodomys anglicus.

The narrow-headed vole, collared lemming and common vole were the most abundant small mammal species across the Eurasian Late Pleistocene steppe-tundra environment. Previous ancient DNA studies of the collared lemming and common vole have revealed dynamic population histories shaped by climatic fluctuations. To investigate the extent to which species with similar adaptations share common evolutionary histories, we generated a dataset comprised the mitochondrial genomes of 139 ancient and 6 modern narrow-headed voles from several sites across Europe and northwestern Asia covering approximately the last 100 thousand years (kyr). We inferred Bayesian time-aware phylogenies using 11 radiocarbon-dated samples to calibrate the molecular clock. Divergence of the main mtDNA lineages across the three species occurred during marine isotope stages (MIS) 7 and MIS 5, suggesting a common response of species adapted to open habitat during interglacials. We identified several time-structured mtDNA lineages in European narrow-headed vole, suggesting lineage turnover. The timing of some of these turnovers was synchronous across the three species, allowing us to identify the main drivers of the Late Pleistocene dynamics of steppe- and cold-adapted species.

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