Davison, A. et al (2001). Mitochondrial phylogeography and population history of pine martens compared with polecats

The flora and fauna of Europe are linked by a common biogeographic history, most recently the Pleistocene glaciations that restricted the range of most, if not all, species to southern refugial populations. Changes in population size and migration, as well as selection, all left a signature on the genetic differentiation that is present today.