Abstract

The Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii) is an endemic bovid of the Tibetan Plateau, which was, until recently, considered an endangered species. Researchers have long speculated on the evolutionary origin of Pantholops, suggesting a connection to the rare fossil bovid Qurliqnoria. However, the lack of adequate fossil samples has prevented the testing of this deep-time endemism hypothesis for eight decades. Here, we report new fossils of Qurliqnoria cheni from the northern Tibetan Plateau, substantially increasing the amount of morphological data that can be brought to bear on the question of Tibetan antelope evolution. Phylogenetic analysis supports a Pantholops–Qurliqnoria clade and suggests that this lineage has been endemic to the Plateau for 11 Myr. Recent morphological and molecular studies that support the outgroup position of Pantholops relative to caprins (goats and relatives) and the fossil record of stem bovids from Europe together suggest that the Qurliqnoria–Pantholops lineage is likely to have dispersed to the Tibetan Plateau 15–11 Mya. Furthermore, the harsh environmental conditions to which Pantholops has adapted are likely to extend back to the time of its evolutionary origin. These findings provide an important new context for conservation management and research into the near-threatened Tibetan antelope, as the longest-living endemic member of the Tibetan Plateau fauna.