Pub Date : 2008-07-25DOI: 10.3409/AZC.51A_1-2.35-47
J. Frankiewicz
FRANKIEWICZ J. 2008. Breeding biology and ecology of Whinchat Saxicola rubetra on abandoned farmland of Opole Province (SW Poland). Acta zoologica cracoviensia, 51A(1-2): 35-47. Abstract. In 2003-2007 the breeding biology and ecology of Whinchat Saxicola rubetra were investigated on the 500 ha mosaic agricultural landscape (cropland, abandoned cropland, meadows, pastures and young pine plantations) in SWPoland. In the area of uncultivated fields, meadows and pine plantations 36, 34, 31, 27 and 28 pairs bred consecutively in particular seasons of the study period. Most nests were situated in the abandoned fields in the grass and tansy Tanacetum vulgare. In the studied population the median date of egg-laying commencement fell on the 16th May. The first young fledged at the end of May. The average clutch size was 6.2 eggs (SD=0.8). The hatching success amounted to 76%. The average breeding success was 4.17 (n=117, SD=2.62) per nest, and 5.6 (n=87, SD=1.04) per successful pair. The overall breeding success was 74.1% (Mayfield method). The main reason behind the brood loss was predation (76.7% of all losses).
{"title":"Breeding biology and ecology of Whinchat Saxicola rubetra on abandoned farmland of Opole Province (SW Poland)","authors":"J. Frankiewicz","doi":"10.3409/AZC.51A_1-2.35-47","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3409/AZC.51A_1-2.35-47","url":null,"abstract":"FRANKIEWICZ J. 2008. Breeding biology and ecology of Whinchat Saxicola rubetra on abandoned farmland of Opole Province (SW Poland). Acta zoologica cracoviensia, 51A(1-2): 35-47. Abstract. In 2003-2007 the breeding biology and ecology of Whinchat Saxicola rubetra were investigated on the 500 ha mosaic agricultural landscape (cropland, abandoned cropland, meadows, pastures and young pine plantations) in SWPoland. In the area of uncultivated fields, meadows and pine plantations 36, 34, 31, 27 and 28 pairs bred consecutively in particular seasons of the study period. Most nests were situated in the abandoned fields in the grass and tansy Tanacetum vulgare. In the studied population the median date of egg-laying commencement fell on the 16th May. The first young fledged at the end of May. The average clutch size was 6.2 eggs (SD=0.8). The hatching success amounted to 76%. The average breeding success was 4.17 (n=117, SD=2.62) per nest, and 5.6 (n=87, SD=1.04) per successful pair. The overall breeding success was 74.1% (Mayfield method). The main reason behind the brood loss was predation (76.7% of all losses).","PeriodicalId":267323,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia - Series A: Vertebrata","volume":"74 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2008-07-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"123042219","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2008-07-12DOI: 10.3409/AZC.51A_1-2.49-58
F. Momtazi, J. Darvish, F. Ghassemzadeh, A. Moghimi
Abstract. The size and shape of the auditory bullae are investigated across three species of Meriones, in order to determine the biosystematic value of bulla characteristics in species recognition. This study is based on outline (geometric morphometric) with elliptical Fourier and eigenshape analysis of tympanic bullae in: (a) the suprameatal triangle, (b) the mastoid, (c) the auditory meatus, and (d) the ventral view of bullae. The results show that characters of the auditory meatus separate these three species from each other. The shape of different parts of the bullae within each species is also shown to vary such as in two populations of M. persicus. The shape of organs is important in the interaction between the organism and its environment. Tympanic bullae variation is similar in the Geno population of M. persicus (Geno is located in south of Iran), and in M. libycus which lives in similar climates. The results of this analysis of tympanic bullae differ from the characters described by CORBET (1978).
{"title":"Elliptic Fourier analysis on the tympanic bullae in three Meriones species (Rodentia, Mammalia): its application in biosystematics","authors":"F. Momtazi, J. Darvish, F. Ghassemzadeh, A. Moghimi","doi":"10.3409/AZC.51A_1-2.49-58","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3409/AZC.51A_1-2.49-58","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. The size and shape of the auditory bullae are investigated across three species of Meriones, in order to determine the biosystematic value of bulla characteristics in species recognition. This study is based on outline (geometric morphometric) with elliptical Fourier and eigenshape analysis of tympanic bullae in: (a) the suprameatal triangle, (b) the mastoid, (c) the auditory meatus, and (d) the ventral view of bullae. The results show that characters of the auditory meatus separate these three species from each other. The shape of different parts of the bullae within each species is also shown to vary such as in two populations of M. persicus. The shape of organs is important in the interaction between the organism and its environment. Tympanic bullae variation is similar in the Geno population of M. persicus (Geno is located in south of Iran), and in M. libycus which lives in similar climates. The results of this analysis of tympanic bullae differ from the characters described by CORBET (1978).","PeriodicalId":267323,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia - Series A: Vertebrata","volume":"17 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2008-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"117203108","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2007-05-31DOI: 10.3409/000000007783995453
B. Rzebik-Kowalska
Remains of five genera and 14 species (Talpidae and Soricidae) have been found in the Pliocene and Pleistocene sediments of ten localities in Western Transbaikalia and Irkutsk Region. Besides fossil (Petenyia sp., Sorex palaeosibiriensis) and Recent taxa (Asioscalops altaica, Crocidura sp., Neomys fodiens, Sorex minutissimus, S. minutus, S. roboratus, S. cf. isodon and S. cf. daphaenodon) known today from the Asiatic continent, two new fossil Sorex species (S. erbajevae and S. baikalensis) have been described. Thus, the number of fossil Sorex species cited so far from Asia (16) increased to 21.
在外贝加尔湖西部和伊尔库茨克地区10个地点的上新世和更新世沉积物中发现了5属14种(Talpidae和Soricidae)化石。除了在亚洲大陆发现的化石(Petenyia sp.， Sorex paleosibiriensis)和最近的分类群(asioscalica, Crocidura sp.， Neomys fodiens, Sorex minutissimus, S. minutus, S. roboratus, S. cfisodon和S. cfdaphaenodon)外，还发现了两个新的Sorex化石种(S. erbajevae和S. baikalensis)。因此，迄今为止从亚洲引用的索雷克斯化石物种(16种)增加到21种。
{"title":"New data on Soricomorpha (Lipotyphla, Mammalia) from the Pliocene and Pleistocene of Transbaikalia and Irkutsk Region (Russia)","authors":"B. Rzebik-Kowalska","doi":"10.3409/000000007783995453","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3409/000000007783995453","url":null,"abstract":"Remains of five genera and 14 species (Talpidae and Soricidae) have been found in the Pliocene and Pleistocene sediments of ten localities in Western Transbaikalia and Irkutsk Region. Besides fossil (Petenyia sp., Sorex palaeosibiriensis) and Recent taxa (Asioscalops altaica, Crocidura sp., Neomys fodiens, Sorex minutissimus, S. minutus, S. roboratus, S. cf. isodon and S. cf. daphaenodon) known today from the Asiatic continent, two new fossil Sorex species (S. erbajevae and S. baikalensis) have been described. Thus, the number of fossil Sorex species cited so far from Asia (16) increased to 21.","PeriodicalId":267323,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia - Series A: Vertebrata","volume":"111 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2007-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"121873961","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2007-05-31DOI: 10.3409/000000007783995444
Joanna Kohyt, T. Postawa
The northern range of R. ferrumequinum reaches the southern boundary of Po- land. Evidence for this species north of this border is growing. Until now, all records were derived only from the winter period. The adult female captured in May suggests that the area of Southern Poland can be used by this species outside the hibernation period.
{"title":"The first record of Rhinolophus ferrumequinum (Chiroptera: Rhinolophidae) from Poland outside the hibernation period","authors":"Joanna Kohyt, T. Postawa","doi":"10.3409/000000007783995444","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3409/000000007783995444","url":null,"abstract":"The northern range of R. ferrumequinum reaches the southern boundary of Po- land. Evidence for this species north of this border is growing. Until now, all records were derived only from the winter period. The adult female captured in May suggests that the area of Southern Poland can be used by this species outside the hibernation period.","PeriodicalId":267323,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia - Series A: Vertebrata","volume":"21 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2007-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"114140131","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2007-05-31DOI: 10.3409/000000007783995381
A. Nadachowski
A comparison of morphological and karyological traits as well as an analysis of ecological preferences and the distribution pattern support the opinion that Microtus schelkovnikovi does not belong to subgenus Terricola and is the sole member of its own taxonomic species group. Hyrcanicola subgen. nov. comprises a single species Microtus (Hyrcanicola) schelkovnikovi, an endemic and relict form, inhabiting the Hyrcanian broad-leaved forest zone of Azerbaijan and Iran.
{"title":"The taxonomic status of Schelkovnikov's Pine Vole Microtus schelkovnikovi (Rodentia, Mammalia)","authors":"A. Nadachowski","doi":"10.3409/000000007783995381","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3409/000000007783995381","url":null,"abstract":"A comparison of morphological and karyological traits as well as an analysis of ecological preferences and the distribution pattern support the opinion that Microtus schelkovnikovi does not belong to subgenus Terricola and is the sole member of its own taxonomic species group. Hyrcanicola subgen. nov. comprises a single species Microtus (Hyrcanicola) schelkovnikovi, an endemic and relict form, inhabiting the Hyrcanian broad-leaved forest zone of Azerbaijan and Iran.","PeriodicalId":267323,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia - Series A: Vertebrata","volume":"58 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2007-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"122645516","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2007-05-31DOI: 10.3409/000000007783995390
K. Stefaniak
Three alcine species: Cervalces carnutorum (LAUGEL, 1862), Cervalces lati- frons (JOHNSON, 1874) and Alces alces LINNAEUS, 1758, were found in Early and Middle Pleistocene sites in Poland. The morphology of the teeth and limb bone fragments of the Early Pleistocene C. carnutorum fromabia Cave and the Middle Pleistocene C. latifrons from the Kozi Grzbiet are described in relation to Eurasian representatives of the Alcinae. The size of C. carnutorum was larger than typical forms of the species from localities in W. Europe. C. carnutorum differed from the other elk in its feeding adaptations and diet, and was similar to other cervids, though it was fully adapted to living in wetlands. A single tooth from Kozi Grzbiet has a size and structure typical of C. latifrons which was wide- spread in Holarctic in the Middle Pleistocene.
{"title":"Early and Middle Pleistocene elk (Alcinae JERDON, 1874, Cervidae, Mammalia) from Poland","authors":"K. Stefaniak","doi":"10.3409/000000007783995390","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3409/000000007783995390","url":null,"abstract":"Three alcine species: Cervalces carnutorum (LAUGEL, 1862), Cervalces lati- frons (JOHNSON, 1874) and Alces alces LINNAEUS, 1758, were found in Early and Middle Pleistocene sites in Poland. The morphology of the teeth and limb bone fragments of the Early Pleistocene C. carnutorum fromabia Cave and the Middle Pleistocene C. latifrons from the Kozi Grzbiet are described in relation to Eurasian representatives of the Alcinae. The size of C. carnutorum was larger than typical forms of the species from localities in W. Europe. C. carnutorum differed from the other elk in its feeding adaptations and diet, and was similar to other cervids, though it was fully adapted to living in wetlands. A single tooth from Kozi Grzbiet has a size and structure typical of C. latifrons which was wide- spread in Holarctic in the Middle Pleistocene.","PeriodicalId":267323,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia - Series A: Vertebrata","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2007-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126029812","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2007-05-31DOI: 10.3409/000000007783995408
B. Borczyk
Sexual dimorphism is widespread in animals, including snakes, and has impor- tant implication in both ecology and behaviour. I studied a grass snake (Natrix natrix) population from "Stawy Milickie" nature reserve. Mean snout-vent length (SVL) for fe- males was significantly greater than SVL for males, but males had proportionally longer tails. However, relative tail length (TL) in males decreased with increasing SVL whereas in females it was constant. Larger tails in males have frequently been associated with in- creasing mating success (e.g. tail wrestling behaviour between males). However, it is pos- sible this is less important in the population that I studied; instead, male snakes can allocate more energy to body growth.
{"title":"The causes of intraspecific variation in sexual dimorphism in the common grass snake populations, Natrix natrix LINNAEUS, 1758 (Serpentes, Colubridae): Data from the South Western Poland","authors":"B. Borczyk","doi":"10.3409/000000007783995408","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3409/000000007783995408","url":null,"abstract":"Sexual dimorphism is widespread in animals, including snakes, and has impor- tant implication in both ecology and behaviour. I studied a grass snake (Natrix natrix) population from \"Stawy Milickie\" nature reserve. Mean snout-vent length (SVL) for fe- males was significantly greater than SVL for males, but males had proportionally longer tails. However, relative tail length (TL) in males decreased with increasing SVL whereas in females it was constant. Larger tails in males have frequently been associated with in- creasing mating success (e.g. tail wrestling behaviour between males). However, it is pos- sible this is less important in the population that I studied; instead, male snakes can allocate more energy to body growth.","PeriodicalId":267323,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia - Series A: Vertebrata","volume":"21 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2007-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126910616","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2007-05-31DOI: 10.3409/000000007783995417
B. Najbar, E. Szuszkiewicz
nests of the European pond turtle Emys orbicularis (L.) were marked in the valley of the Ilanka river (Ziemia Lubuska, western Poland) in the years 1999-2006. 54 nests built by 16 marked females were located in a relatively small area. The remains of 5 other nests, belonging to unknown females and damaged by predators were found in 3 lo- calities in the vicinity of the main study area. 3 out of all marked females laid eggs once, the remaining 13 females 2-7 times. Cases when females laid eggs at least two times were taken into account i.e. 51 nests. Females laid eggs on steep, sunny mid-forest clearings with areas of 375 m 2 -1170 m 2 and situated at a distance of 69-83 m (aver. 77 m) from wa- ter bodies. Apart from the nesting grounds studied, 5 disturbed nests mentioned above were located at a distance of 150-270 m from water bodies. The distance between nests was 0.75-53.9 m (aver. 8.8 m). Most females consistently, each year opted for the same nesting sites (nests) as previous years. Successional vegetation growth and overshadow- ing of the clearings led to the use of locations in nearby areas. Once overshadowing was eliminated, females returned to locations in which they had been observed previously.
{"title":"Nest-site fidelity of the European pond turtle Emys orbicularis (LINNAEUS, 1758) (Testudines: Emydidae) in western Poland","authors":"B. Najbar, E. Szuszkiewicz","doi":"10.3409/000000007783995417","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3409/000000007783995417","url":null,"abstract":"nests of the European pond turtle Emys orbicularis (L.) were marked in the valley of the Ilanka river (Ziemia Lubuska, western Poland) in the years 1999-2006. 54 nests built by 16 marked females were located in a relatively small area. The remains of 5 other nests, belonging to unknown females and damaged by predators were found in 3 lo- calities in the vicinity of the main study area. 3 out of all marked females laid eggs once, the remaining 13 females 2-7 times. Cases when females laid eggs at least two times were taken into account i.e. 51 nests. Females laid eggs on steep, sunny mid-forest clearings with areas of 375 m 2 -1170 m 2 and situated at a distance of 69-83 m (aver. 77 m) from wa- ter bodies. Apart from the nesting grounds studied, 5 disturbed nests mentioned above were located at a distance of 150-270 m from water bodies. The distance between nests was 0.75-53.9 m (aver. 8.8 m). Most females consistently, each year opted for the same nesting sites (nests) as previous years. Successional vegetation growth and overshadow- ing of the clearings led to the use of locations in nearby areas. Once overshadowing was eliminated, females returned to locations in which they had been observed previously.","PeriodicalId":267323,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia - Series A: Vertebrata","volume":"114 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2007-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"124795718","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2007-05-31DOI: 10.3409/000000007783995426
A. Karataş, S. Ozkurt, D. Kock
The vespertilionid bat Nyctalus lasiopterus (SCHREBER, 1780) was recovered in the Eastern Karadeniz. This is second record from Turkey, an unusual roosting site for the species formed by an oil drilling platform at sea, is discussed together with other biologi- cal aspects.
{"title":"The recovery of Nyctalus lasiopterus (SCHREBER 1780) (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) in Turkey","authors":"A. Karataş, S. Ozkurt, D. Kock","doi":"10.3409/000000007783995426","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3409/000000007783995426","url":null,"abstract":"The vespertilionid bat Nyctalus lasiopterus (SCHREBER, 1780) was recovered in the Eastern Karadeniz. This is second record from Turkey, an unusual roosting site for the species formed by an oil drilling platform at sea, is discussed together with other biologi- cal aspects.","PeriodicalId":267323,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia - Series A: Vertebrata","volume":"40 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2007-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"133066461","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2007-05-31DOI: 10.3409/000000007783995372
J. Stewart
The extinction of the Neanderthals has not been widely considered in the light of the palaeoecology of other mammals. Therefore, a palaeoecological and historical bioge- ographical analysis of a database of European mammalian fossils for the period covering 60-20 thousand calendar years (approximately OIS 3 and covering the time when Nean- derthals became extinct) has been conducted that shed light on the ecological conditions of this period. Broadly the larger mammals in this database form historical biogeographi- cal categories including extant ubiquitous, extant northern and montane, extant eastern, extinct northern and extinct southern taxa. Neanderthals appear to belong to the extinct southern grouping which highlights the lack of attention they had received from the per- spective of extinct Late Pleistocene Megafaunal elements. The temporal distribution of taxa confirms the decline towards the Last Glacial Maximum of the southern extinct group and further reveals a decrease in the occurrence of many smaller carnivores. The latter may indicate a decrease in carrying capacity as temperatures decreased which is supported by the decrease in occurrence of mammoths on non-archaeological sites and other similar phenomena documented elsewhere. The geographical distribution of the larger mammals of OIS 3 confirms a retreat towards the South and West of Neanderthals similar to that of the straight-tusked elephant Elephas antiquus and Merck's rhino Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis, both of which also became extinct towards the Last Gla- cial Maximum. The change in geographical distribution of the European wild ass Equus hydruntinus through OIS 3 may be closest to that of the Neanderthals implying similar tol- erances. The results of the palaeoecological and palaeobiogeographical study of Neander- thals prompt a reconsideration of their supposed adaptations.
{"title":"Neanderthal extinction as part of the faunal change in Europe during Oxygen Isotope Stage 3","authors":"J. Stewart","doi":"10.3409/000000007783995372","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3409/000000007783995372","url":null,"abstract":"The extinction of the Neanderthals has not been widely considered in the light of the palaeoecology of other mammals. Therefore, a palaeoecological and historical bioge- ographical analysis of a database of European mammalian fossils for the period covering 60-20 thousand calendar years (approximately OIS 3 and covering the time when Nean- derthals became extinct) has been conducted that shed light on the ecological conditions of this period. Broadly the larger mammals in this database form historical biogeographi- cal categories including extant ubiquitous, extant northern and montane, extant eastern, extinct northern and extinct southern taxa. Neanderthals appear to belong to the extinct southern grouping which highlights the lack of attention they had received from the per- spective of extinct Late Pleistocene Megafaunal elements. The temporal distribution of taxa confirms the decline towards the Last Glacial Maximum of the southern extinct group and further reveals a decrease in the occurrence of many smaller carnivores. The latter may indicate a decrease in carrying capacity as temperatures decreased which is supported by the decrease in occurrence of mammoths on non-archaeological sites and other similar phenomena documented elsewhere. The geographical distribution of the larger mammals of OIS 3 confirms a retreat towards the South and West of Neanderthals similar to that of the straight-tusked elephant Elephas antiquus and Merck's rhino Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis, both of which also became extinct towards the Last Gla- cial Maximum. The change in geographical distribution of the European wild ass Equus hydruntinus through OIS 3 may be closest to that of the Neanderthals implying similar tol- erances. The results of the palaeoecological and palaeobiogeographical study of Neander- thals prompt a reconsideration of their supposed adaptations.","PeriodicalId":267323,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia - Series A: Vertebrata","volume":"9 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2007-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"116179690","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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