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dc.contributor.authorKjær, Kurt H.
dc.contributor.authorWinther Pedersen, Mikkel
dc.contributor.authorDe Sanctis, Bianca
dc.contributor.authorDe Cahsan, Binia
dc.contributor.authorKorneliussen, Thorfinn S.
dc.contributor.authorMichelsen, Christian S.
dc.contributor.authorSand, Karina K.
dc.contributor.authorJelavić, Stanislav
dc.contributor.authorRuter, Anthony H.
dc.contributor.authorSchmidt, Astrid M. A.
dc.contributor.authorKjeldsen, Kristian K.
dc.contributor.authorTesakov, Alexey S.
dc.contributor.authorSnowball, Ian
dc.contributor.authorGosse, John C.
dc.contributor.authorAlsos, Inger Greve
dc.contributor.authorWang, Yucheng
dc.contributor.authorDockter, Christoph
dc.contributor.authorRasmussen, Magnus
dc.contributor.authorJørgensen, Morten E.
dc.contributor.authorSkadhauge, Birgitte
dc.contributor.authorProhaska, Ana
dc.contributor.authorKristensen, Jeppe Å.
dc.contributor.authorBjerager, Morten
dc.contributor.authorAllentoft, Morten E.
dc.contributor.authorCoissac, Eric
dc.contributor.authorRouillard, Alexandra
dc.contributor.authorSimakova, Alexandra
dc.contributor.authorFernandez-Guerra, Antonio
dc.contributor.authorBowler, Chris
dc.contributor.authorMacias-Fauria, Marc
dc.contributor.authorVinner, Lasse
dc.contributor.authorWelch, John J.
dc.contributor.authorHidy, Alan J.
dc.contributor.authorSikora, Martin
dc.contributor.authorCollins, Matthew J.
dc.contributor.authorDurbin, Richard
dc.contributor.authorLarsen, Nicolaj K.
dc.contributor.authorWillerslev, Eske
dc.date.accessioned2023-01-06T12:39:54Z
dc.date.available2023-01-06T12:39:54Z
dc.date.issued2022-12-07
dc.description.abstractLate Pliocene and Early Pleistocene epochs 3.6 to 0.8 million years ago had climates resembling those forecasted under future warming. Palaeoclimatic records show strong polar amplification with mean annual temperatures of 11–19 °C above contemporary values. The biological communities inhabiting the Arctic during this time remain poorly known because fossils are rare. Here we report an ancient environmental DNA (eDNA) record describing the rich plant and animal assemblages of the Kap København Formation in North Greenland, dated to around two million years ago. The record shows an open boreal forest ecosystem with mixed vegetation of poplar, birch and thuja trees, as well as a variety of Arctic and boreal shrubs and herbs, many of which had not previously been detected at the site from macrofossil and pollen records. The DNA record confirms the presence of hare and mitochondrial DNA from animals including mastodons, reindeer, rodents and geese, all ancestral to their present-day and late Pleistocene relatives. The presence of marine species including horseshoe crab and green algae support a warmer climate than today. The reconstructed ecosystem has no modern analogue. The survival of such ancient eDNA probably relates to its binding to mineral surfaces. Our findings open new areas of genetic research, demonstrating that it is possible to track the ecology and evolution of biological communities from two million years ago using ancient eDNA.en_US
dc.identifier.citationKjær, Winther Pedersen, De Sanctis, De Cahsan, Korneliussen, Michelsen, Sand, Jelavić, Ruter, Schmidt, Kjeldsen, Tesakov, Snowball, Gosse, Alsos, Wang, Dockter, Rasmussen, Jørgensen, Skadhauge, Prohaska, Kristensen, Bjerager, Allentoft, Coissac, Rouillard, Simakova, Fernandez-Guerra, Bowler, Macias-Fauria, Vinner, Welch, Hidy, Sikora, Collins, Durbin, Larsen, Willerslev. A 2-million-year-old ecosystem in Greenland uncovered by environmental DNA. Nature. 2022;612(7939):283-291en_US
dc.identifier.cristinIDFRIDAID 2098191
dc.identifier.doi10.1038/s41586-022-05453-y
dc.identifier.issn0028-0836
dc.identifier.issn1476-4687
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10037/28057
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.publisherSpringer Natureen_US
dc.relation.journalNature
dc.relation.projectIDEC/H2020: 819192en_US
dc.relation.projectIDCarlsbergfondet: CF18-0024en_US
dc.relation.projectIDERC-European Research Council: 835067en_US
dc.relation.projectIDCarlsbergfondet: CF20-0238en_US
dc.relation.projectIDCarlsbergfondet: CF17-0275en_US
dc.relation.projectIDinfo:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/H2020/819192/Norway/Ice Age Genomic Tracking of Refugia and Postglacial Dispersal/IceAGenT/en_US
dc.rights.accessRightsopenAccessen_US
dc.rights.holderCopyright 2022 The Author(s)en_US
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0en_US
dc.rightsAttribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)en_US
dc.titleA 2-million-year-old ecosystem in Greenland uncovered by environmental DNAen_US
dc.type.versionpublishedVersionen_US
dc.typeJournal articleen_US
dc.typeTidsskriftartikkelen_US
dc.typePeer revieweden_US


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Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)