Table of Contents: Volume 9 (1) 2010 (published 21 February 2011)

New remarkable bat records in Hoang Lien Son mountain range, northern Vietnam Kruskop S.V., Shchinov A.V. P. 1-8 During a short-term survey, fifteen bat species were recorded in the north-east part of Hoang Lien Son mountain range, Tonkin, Vietnam; some of these findings are of particular zoogeographic interest. The first confirmed record of Barbastella from Vietnam was made; the specimens morphologically resemble B. darjelingensis, differing slightly in coloration from Indian and Central Asian forms. The specimen tentatively identified as Hypsugo cf. joffrei may represent the first record of the species outside its terra typica. Harpiola isodon is reported for the second time from Vietnam; its new capture site is situated half-way the between previous known location in Ngoc Linh and terra typica in Taiwan. Records of Murina cf. harpioloides, Hypsugo cadornae and Thainycteris aureocollaris represent Vietnamese range extensions for these species; among them, the collecting site of M. cf. harpioloides is very remote from previously known location. The local bat community seems to be a rich mix of Malayan, Indo-Himalayan and even Palaearctic faunal elements. Details    Download PDF

Late Pleistocene brown bear (Ursus arctos) from the Caucasus Baryshnikov G.F. P. 9-17 The examination of the fossil collections of teeth and bones of Ursus arctos from Paleolithic sites in Kudaro cave, South Ossetia, revealed the attribution of the Late Pleistocene material to the fossil subspecies U. a. binagadensis. The brown bear remains recovered in the layers dated by the end of Late Pleistocene is referred to the extant Caucasian subspecies U. a. meridionalis. Details    Download PDF

Geographic variation of skull traits in the Libyan jird, Meriones libycus (Rodentia: Gerbillinae), over its entire distribution area Pavlinov I.Ya., Lissovsky A.A., Obolenskaya E.V. P. 19-26 Geographic variation of 11 measurable cranial traits was studied on a set of 37 local samples of the Libyan jird, Meriones libycus, over its entire distribution area. MANOVA, cluster, canonical discriminant, and regression analyses were applied to consider both scalar and vector parameters of variation. It is shown that the Libyan jird is divided craniometrically into tree principal clusters, African, SW–N Caspian, and “main Asian” ones, which differ basically by auditory bulla size (the least in SW–N Caspian cluster) and incisive foramen length (the least in some subsamples of “main Asian” cluster). Auditory bulla size is shown to be negatively, though not very strongly, correlated with the aridity index. However, the SW–N Caspian cluster is characterized by much smaller bulla than it is predicted by the regression with climatic parameter. This might be explained by some historical causes according to which a small size of auditory bulla in the jirds of that cluster reflects retention of the ancestral condition. It is suggested that subspecies M. l. caucasius from Azerbaijan is most conspicuously differentiated by cranial morphology, but its taxonomic relation to M. l. eversmanni from N Caspian region needs further clarification. The method of “vector” analysis of geographic trends within large portions of the areas of widely distributed species, such as M. libycus, seems to be useful in providing additional important information concerning biological specificity of respective territorial groupings. Details    Download PDF

A preliminary survey on nest cavity use by Siberian flying squirrels, Pteromys volans orii, in forests of Hokkaido Island, Japan Kadoya N., Iguchi K., Matsui M., Okahira T., Kato A., Oshida T., Hayashi Y. P. 27-32 Pteromys volans orii, which is an endemic subspecies to Hokkaido Island, Japan, is arboreal and usually nests in cavities in trunks. To broadly understand what nest cavity is selected by P. volans orii in mountainous areas, we preliminary surveyed cavity resources in natural forests of Hokkaido. All nest cavities were on live-trees. Most of them were naturally formed after branches fall from the tree. These findings seem to be specific to Hokkaido population. Longest diameter of nest cavities was significantly shorter than that of unused cavities. This suggests that P. volans orii may select cavities with smaller entrances to avoid predators. The nest tree species most frequently used by this subspecies was Abies sachalinensis, which is most dominant in mountainous forests of Hokkaido. A. sachalinensis would provide abundant nest resources for P. volans orii. Details    Download PDF

The distribution history of the Amur brown lemming (Lemmus amurensis) in the Late Pleistocene – Holocene in the southern Far East of Russia Tiunov M.P., Panasenko V.E. P. 33-37 Fossil bone remains of Amur (Lemmus amurensis) and wood (Myopus schisticolor) lemmings were obtained from the Late Pleistocene-Holocene deposits at the Medvezhiy Klyk Cave (Primorski Kray). These species were differentiated based on proportions of M3. Bone remains of Amur lemming occur throughout the exposed thickness of loose deposits in the Medvezhiy Klyk Cave from the depth of 5.4 m and almost to the surface. The occurrence confirms a hypothesis of a relict status of recent Amur lemming and its wider distribution in the Late Pleistocene. Details    Download PDF

Cavity resources for Siberian flying squirrel, Pteromys volans orii, in two different habitats in Hokkaido, Japan Marugame M., Izumi I., Matsui M., Okahira T., Oshida T., Hayashi Y. P. 39-43 The Siberian flying squirrel (Pteromys volans) is arboreal and usually nests in cavities in trunks. The population on Hokkaido Island, Japan, is considered an endemic subspecies (P. volans orii). In mountainous areas of Hokkaido, P. volans orii mainly inhabits mixed forests dominated by Picea jezoensis or Abies sachalinensis. To understand these usefulness as P. volans orii habitat, we made a preliminary comparison of cavity resources in two different forests common in Hokkaido. Inner space of cavities in A. sachalinensis-dominated habitat was significantly larger than that in P. jezoensis-dominated habitat. This may mean that A. sachalinensis-dominated habitat provides more useful cavity nests for P. volans orii. Abies sachalinensis is only distributed in Hokkaido and Sakhalin Island and the Kuril Islands of Russia. Pteromys volans orii might have adapted itself into the unique A. sachalinensis-dominated forests located on the periphery of P. volans distribution. Details    Download PDF