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The first record of “spelaeoid” bears in Arctic Siberia

The first record of “spelaeoid” bears in Arctic Siberia
The first record of “spelaeoid” bears in Arctic Siberia
For a long time, “spelaeoid” (cave-bear-like) bears, Ursus (Spelearctos) spp., were believed to be almost purely European animals. Their geographic range has recently been extended to the east, in southern Siberia, Transbaikalia, Kirghizia, Mongolia and Korea. Two unexpected new findings, presented here in detail, significantly change existing views on the distribution of cave bears; both were found in North-Eastern Siberia, far beyond the Arctic Circle, more than 1500 km to the north-east of the previously accepted range.

One of the fossils is a mandible, found near the town of Cherskiy at 68.73°N, 161.38°E. The analysis of local geology and accompanying mammal fossils suggests that it comes from the Olyorian Fauna (Early to early Middle Pleistocene). Morphologically, the Cherskiy mandible is closest to Ursus savini, a small middle Pleistocene cave bear from the British Cromer Forest-bed Formation, but differs in having a slightly more advanced dentition, and thus it is described as a new subspecies Ursus savini nordostensis. Another newly recognized fossil of the “spelaeoid” bear is an astragalus found at the Oskhordokh site at 67.54°N, 135.67°E, on a large gravel bar on the right bank of the Adycha River. This specimen is attributed to Ursus cf. deningeri.

The paper also presents an interesting example of the interaction between classical and “molecular” palaeontology.

The new finds significantly change existing ideas on the ecology and evolution of cave bears, some of the most remarkable members of the extinct Pleistocene megafauna
0277-3791
2238-2249
Sher, Andrei V.
f16cf3ad-ed42-475c-901c-d27ef337b5ee
Weinstock, Jacobo
edcdb255-f6d0-4a66-8c47-28b70d79896e
Baryshnikov, Gennady F.
934f7e1c-54ce-4e0f-b11c-2bc1d6064241
Davydov, Sergey P.
d6a1c6a0-085a-4252-b804-701f4e2e65a8
Boeskorov, Gennady G.
6f91ddea-498d-4c0e-b942-c70f5fa97f34
Zazhigin, Vladimir S.
907b5753-1145-4a2c-b9b5-2038c0de9240
Nikolskiy, Pavel A.
3ccf9cfc-5e42-4166-9a3a-40a3139833bd
Sher, Andrei V.
f16cf3ad-ed42-475c-901c-d27ef337b5ee
Weinstock, Jacobo
edcdb255-f6d0-4a66-8c47-28b70d79896e
Baryshnikov, Gennady F.
934f7e1c-54ce-4e0f-b11c-2bc1d6064241
Davydov, Sergey P.
d6a1c6a0-085a-4252-b804-701f4e2e65a8
Boeskorov, Gennady G.
6f91ddea-498d-4c0e-b942-c70f5fa97f34
Zazhigin, Vladimir S.
907b5753-1145-4a2c-b9b5-2038c0de9240
Nikolskiy, Pavel A.
3ccf9cfc-5e42-4166-9a3a-40a3139833bd

Sher, Andrei V., Weinstock, Jacobo, Baryshnikov, Gennady F., Davydov, Sergey P., Boeskorov, Gennady G., Zazhigin, Vladimir S. and Nikolskiy, Pavel A. (2011) The first record of “spelaeoid” bears in Arctic Siberia. [in special issue: Beringia and Beyond: Papers Celebrating the Scientific Career of Andrei Vladimirovich Sher, 1939–2008] Quaternary Science Reviews, 30 (17-18), 2238-2249. (doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2010.10.016).

Record type: Article

Abstract

For a long time, “spelaeoid” (cave-bear-like) bears, Ursus (Spelearctos) spp., were believed to be almost purely European animals. Their geographic range has recently been extended to the east, in southern Siberia, Transbaikalia, Kirghizia, Mongolia and Korea. Two unexpected new findings, presented here in detail, significantly change existing views on the distribution of cave bears; both were found in North-Eastern Siberia, far beyond the Arctic Circle, more than 1500 km to the north-east of the previously accepted range.

One of the fossils is a mandible, found near the town of Cherskiy at 68.73°N, 161.38°E. The analysis of local geology and accompanying mammal fossils suggests that it comes from the Olyorian Fauna (Early to early Middle Pleistocene). Morphologically, the Cherskiy mandible is closest to Ursus savini, a small middle Pleistocene cave bear from the British Cromer Forest-bed Formation, but differs in having a slightly more advanced dentition, and thus it is described as a new subspecies Ursus savini nordostensis. Another newly recognized fossil of the “spelaeoid” bear is an astragalus found at the Oskhordokh site at 67.54°N, 135.67°E, on a large gravel bar on the right bank of the Adycha River. This specimen is attributed to Ursus cf. deningeri.

The paper also presents an interesting example of the interaction between classical and “molecular” palaeontology.

The new finds significantly change existing ideas on the ecology and evolution of cave bears, some of the most remarkable members of the extinct Pleistocene megafauna

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More information

e-pub ahead of print date: 26 November 2011
Organisations: Archaeology

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 204225
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/204225
ISSN: 0277-3791
PURE UUID: 4d7a6b9b-e855-48b0-8c4c-bdb51e3e9ded

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Date deposited: 25 Nov 2011 11:15
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 04:30

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Contributors

Author: Andrei V. Sher
Author: Gennady F. Baryshnikov
Author: Sergey P. Davydov
Author: Gennady G. Boeskorov
Author: Vladimir S. Zazhigin
Author: Pavel A. Nikolskiy

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