The origin and dispersal of the domesticated Chinese oak silkworm, Antheraea pernyi, in China: a reconstruction based on ancient texts

Abstract

Sericulture is one of the great inventions of the ancient Chinese. Besides the mulberry silkworm (Bombyx mori), Chinese farmers developed rearing of the Chinese oak silkworm (Antheraea pernyi) about 400 years ago. In this paper, the historic records of the origins and dispersal of the domesticated Chinese oak silkworm in China are summarized. The first document with clearly recorded oak silkworm artificial rearing appeared in 1651, although Chinese oak silkworm was documented in about 270 AD. All of the evidence in the available historic records suggests that the domesticated Chinese oak silkworm originated in central and southern areas of Shandong Province in China around the 16th century, and then was introduced directly and indirectly by human commerce into the present habitations in China after the late 17th century. The results strongly support the hypothesis that only one geographically distinct event occurred in domestication of the modern Chinese oak silkworm.

Figure 1.

Schematic diagram of origin and dispersal of domesticated Chinese oak silkworm. The green dot refers to the birthplace of domesticated Chinese oak silkworm, and the green arrows refer to the primary dispersal route.The brown dots show the secondary dispersal centers, and the brown arrows show the secondary dispersal route. The boxed numbers accompanying with the dispersal places represent the years of introduction of the domesticated Chinese oak silkworm based on the historic records. AH, Anhui; CQ, Chongqing; GZ, Guizhou; HB, Hubei; HeN, Henan; HLJ, Heilongjiang; HuN, Hunan; JL, Jilin; LN, Liaoning; NMG, Neimenggu; SD, Shandong; SC, Sichuan; SX, Shanxi; YN, Yunnan; ZJ, Zhejiang. High quality figures are available online.