Abstract
A mitochondrial and nuclear gene analysis allowed us to precise the taxonomical position of the two sympatric species of mice known to be present on Cyprus. One of them is the commensal house mouse M. m. domesticus, and the other revealed to be a new taxon that is a sister species of M. spicilegus and M. macedonicus. The new species is equidistant from each of these, the divergence dating around 0.5-1 Myr. Its origin either results from an ancient accidental colonisation of the island or from a recent transportation by the first epipalaeolithic settlers. In this last eventuality, the new species would also exist somewhere else in Asia Minor.
