Genomic Evidence for the Chinese Mountain Cat as a Wildcat Conspecific (Felis silvestris bieti) and Its Introgression to Domestic Cats

The enigmatic Chinese mountain cat, endemic to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, has a controversial taxonomic status, whether a true species or conspecific with the wildcat (Felis silvestris ) and whether it may have contributed to the domestication of cats (F. s. catus ) in Asia. Here, we sampled 270 domestic and wild cats across China, sequenced 51 nuclear genomes, 55 mitogenomes, and multi-locus regions from modern and museum specimens. Genome-wide phylogenies supported taxonomic classification of the Chinese mountain cat as wildcat subspecies, F. s. bieti . No involvement of F. s. bieti in cat domestication in East Asia was detected, confirming that domestic cats shared a single origin from the African wildcat (F. s. lybica ). A complex hybridization scenario including ancient introgression from the Asiatic wildcat (F. s. ornata ) to F. s. bieti , and contemporary gene flow between F. s. bieti and sympatric domestic cats in the Tibetan region, raises the prospect of disrupting the genetic integrity of F. s. bieti , an issue with profound conservation implications.