International research team discovers prehistory of aurochs, ancestor of modern cattle, and links climate change to population fluctuations.

An international research team, including geneticists from Trinity College Dublin, has uncovered the prehistory of aurochs, the wild ancestor of modern cattle, which became extinct in the 17th century. Analyzing 38 ancient genomes, the study revealed significant genetic diversity and linked climate change to population fluctuations. It found that nearly all domestic cattle descend from a few maternal auroch lineages, emphasizing the impact of domestication on genetic variation.