Donkey the environment. They may compete with livestock and native animals for resources, spread weeds and diseases, foul or damage watering holes and cause erosion. Few species of ass exist in the wild. The African wild ass, "Equus africanus", has two subspecies, the Somali wild ass, "Equus africanus somaliensis", and the Nubian wild ass, "Equus africanus africanus", the principal ancestor of the domestic donkey. Both are critically endangered. Extinct species include the European ass, "Equus hydruntinus", which became extinct during the Neolithic, and the North African wild ass, "Equus africanus atlanticus", which became extinct in Roman times. There are five subspecies
Onager known as the Persian onager. Until this day, the species share the same name, "onager". The onager is a member of the subgenus "Asinus", belonging to the genus "Equus" and is classified under the family Equidae. The species was described and given its binomial name "Equus hemionus" by German zoologist Peter Simon Pallas in 1775. The Asiatic wild ass, among Old World equids, existed for more than 4 million years. The oldest divergence of "Equus" was the onager followed by the zebras and onwards. A new species called the kiang ("E. kiang"), a Tibetan relative, was previously considered to be