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Investigations of the unconsolidated Upper Pleistocene – Holocene cave deposits of the Northern Urals resulted in detailed biostratigraphical and palaeoenvironmental data. The article summarizes data from important stratigraphical levels exposed in 19 cave localities, most part of which represent several layers dated to different periods. These data cover the period from the beginning of the Upper Pleistocene (MIS 5-4) to the end of the Upper Holocene. At the beginning of Marine Isotope Stage 3 (MIS 3), open woodlands were distributed, which at the end of MIS 3 were replaced by Forest–steppe landscapes. At the beginning of MIS 2 (LGM), Periglacial steppe landscape was distributed. At the end of MIS 2 and at the beginning of the Holocene (MIS 1), semi-open landscapes were common. At the beginning of the Middle Holocene, they were replaced by taiga landscapes. Fish were present in the fauna of the Northern Urals in the Upper Pleistocene and Holocene. Amphibians in the Upper Pleistocene as part of the fauna of the region appear only at its beginning (MIS 5-4) and end (Bølling – Allerød period). Since the beginning of the Holocene (MIS 1), they have been constantly present in the fauna of the Northern Urals. Reptiles appear in the fauna of the region only in the Middle Holocene. During the Upper Pleistocene, the avifauna and fauna of small mammals were dominated by species of open landscapes, and the fauna of large mammals was dominated by species of open and semi-open landscapes. At the beginning of the Holocene, the avifauna and theriofauna increased the number of species associated with tree and shrub vegetation and near-aquatic species. Since the beginning of the Middle Holocene, the avifauna and theriofauna have been dominated by species of taiga landscapes. Palynological data and data on the fauna of small and large mammals allow us to separate the deposits of the Upper Pleistocene and Holocene. These data also allow us to separate the deposits of the beginning (MIS 5-4), middle (MIS 3), end (MIS 2)) of the Upper Pleistocene, Lower, Middle and Upper Holocene (MIS 1). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The results of the comprehensive study of zoogenic deposits in the Makhnevskaya-2 Cave (the north of the Middle Urals) made it possible to reconstruct gradual changes in the flora and fauna of the local territory during the Middle Valdai (Briansk) interstadial (MIS 3). The formation of deposits passed through three stages, which differ in proportions of tundra, steppe, and forest vegetation components as well as in proportions of multiple taxa Dicrostonyx torquatus , Microtus gregalis , Lemmini gen. The dental morphological characteristics of two species of rodents (Dicrostonyx torquatus , Microtus gregalis) helped identify biostratigraphic markers of the studied period of the Late Pleistocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brown bears are one of the few large carnivore species that survived the final Pleistocene wave of extinctions, perhaps in part owing to their wide ecological plasticity, variety of forms and polyphagia. Although the brown bear has become a well‐studied system, many questions remain regarding the ecological, trophic and genetic diversity throughout their distribution. For example, knowledge about Asiatic Russian brown bears from the Late Pleistocene arctic tundra steppe, an ecosystem with no analogue in modern times, is sparse. Here we compared diets, morphometry and genetic affinities of Late Pleistocene bears based on broadly sampled subfossil remains from Asiatic Russia. Collecting sites included the Ural Mountains, the lower reaches of the Irtysh River, the upper reaches of the Ob River, the Altai Mountains of western Siberia, the Indigirka–Kolyma Lowlands and northwestern Chukotka. An extremely large bear specimen from the middle Indigirka (41 090 14C a BP) that lived in landscapes of treeless shrubs and wet meadows had a diet composed principally of large herbivorous mammals. A bear from western Chukotka (25 880 14C a BP), much smaller in size, had a diet close to that of modern brown bears. These two Late Pleistocene NE Russian brown bears may comprise a previously undiscovered, but extinct, genetic lineage. At the end of the Pleistocene (MIS 3 and MIS 2), the brown bears from the Ob River Valley and Urals lived in periglacial forest‐steppes and those from the southern Urals in conditions of periglacial steppe. Brown bears from the Ob River valley and Urals, as well as ancient Altai bears, were characterized by a varied diet, from polyphagia to vegetarianism. In living brown bears, the proportions of different dietary foods are primarily related to food availability, which depends on the geographical zone and climatic conditions. We conclude that the same was true for Late Pleistocene brown bears of NE Siberia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents data on the enamel characteristics (thickness, enamel differentiation coefficient (SDQ)) of the first lower molars of the European water vole (based on the conditional groups "juvenile" and "adult") from fossil and modern samples from the Perm Pre-Urals (Russia). Among the "adult" group teeth, samples from the Eemian (Mikulino) interglacial deposits had the highest mean SDQ values (91.5–94.8), while samples from the end of the Bryansk Interstadial, the Late Glacial, the Early Holocene deposits had the lowest (76.3–84.9). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The composition of large mammal fauna from the Imanay Cave in the Southern Urals (53°02' N, 56°26' E) is described in the present study. The paper aims to provide an preliminary description of the large mammal remains from the Imanay Cave in order to establish their taxonomic status, geological age and to detect the factors that led to accumulation of the bone remains in the cave. An analysis of species composition of vertebrate fauna, archaeological finds and radiocarbon dates has shown that accumulation of fossils in the Imanay Cave spanned the whole period of the Late Pleistocene and Holocene. Remains of the small cave bear (Ursus " savini ") and cave lion (Panthera ex gr. fossilis-spelaea) are prevalent in the Pleistocene groups: 9414 (93%) and 536 (5%) bone specimens, respectively. The cave is the only site in the world where mass bone assemblages of two large terrestrial Carnivora species - small cave bear and cave lion – were found simultaneously. The composition of the skeletal samples for both species was described and the age and sex distributions were determined. Though Mousterian stone tools were found in the cave, no trace of the hunt of the bears and lions by humans was detected. The period during which the accumulation of the fossils took place can be broadly determined as the first half of the Late Pleistocene (MIS5–3). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investigations of the unconsolidated Upper Pleistocene – Holocene cave deposits of the Southern Urals resulted in detailed biostratigraphical and palaeoenvironmental data. Landscapes of this area have a mosaic character. The forests have regional features developed at the transition of Eastern European broadleaved-dark-coniferous taiga and the Southern-Uralian light coniferous forests. The modern mountain mixed forests appeared during the end of the Holocene. The forest-steppes were widespread during Late Neopleistocene – Holocene. The forest vegetation existed during the warm periods (Tabulda, Middle-Late Holocene) and areas covered by forest were reduced during the cold intervals (Kudashevo, Early Holocene). However, refugia of broad-leaved flora existed in the territory of the Southern Urals even during coldest periods. The Late Pleistocene and Holocene mollusc species are Holarctic species that occur in forest-steppe, forest and intrazonal (river banks) ecological biotopes. The Late Pleistocene and Holocene amphibian associations found in caves are characterized by species that prefer forest biotopes. The reptile faunas contain species which inhabited open areas. The Pleistocene and Holocene fish fauna is a characteristic freshwater fauna occurring in a temperate zone: all species currently inhabit the European rivers. The Pleistocene and Holocene avifaunas include species that occur in the modern ornithological faunas of Northern Asia, Central and Northern Europe. The Late Pleistocene fauna was dominated by species that inhabited open and semi-open landscapes whereas, during the Holocene, species that preferred closed biotopes dominated the bird fauna. During the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene disharmonious small-mammal faunas existed in the central and northern parts of the Southern Urals. These faunas included steppe and semi-desert species; lemmings are rare. In the southern part of the Southern Urals and in the Trans-Urals lemmings are absent. Starting from the Middle Holocene there is a gradual change of small-mammal communities. In the Southern Urals forest species replace the predominance of steppe species, and only in the Trans-Urals the steppe small mammal fauna preserved. The modern small-mammal faunal community appeared in the latitudinal part of the Belaya River valley at the end of the Late Holocene. There were relatively little changes in the Southern Urals large mammal fauna at the end of the Late Neopleistocene – beginning of Holocene. The large mammal fauna consisted of eurybiotic species and species that inhabit open landscapes. Species that prefer forest landscapes appeared at the end of the Early Holocene – beginning of the Middle Holocene. Modern large mammal species appeared during the second half of the Late Holocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pollen and fossil mammals of the terrigenous deposits in the Makhnevskaya Ledyanaya Cave (59°26′ N 57°41' E), located in the northern part of the Middle Urals and on the border with the Northern Urals, were studied. The spore-and-pollen spectra are divided into four pollen zones. In all the spectra, pollen concentrations of tree species amount to 50–70%. The presence of pollen in thermophilic (Quercus robur -type, Tilia cordata -type, Ulmus sp., Carpinus betulus, Corylus avellana- type) and moderate boreal (Abies, Picea, Pinus, Betula, Alnus) species and a lack of any tundra flora elements indicate their interglacial nature. The following have been identified as small mammal fauna: 8 taxa of insectivorous mammals, 4 taxa of bats, 2 taxa of lagomorphs, 4 species of carnivores, 16 species of rodents, 1 species of odd-toed ungulates and 4 species of even-toed ungulates. The remains of cryoxerophilous (Dicrostonyx sp., Lasiopodomys gregalis) and steppe (Ochotona sp.) species are scarce in the studied fauna. Species typical of forests (genus Sorex , genus Craseomys , genus Myodes , Myopus schisticolor , Microtus agrestis) are dominant. Remains of Erinaceus sp., Talpa sp., Crocidura leucodon, Sciurus vulgaris , Hystrix brachyura , Dryomys nitedula , Apodemus flavicollis , Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis have been found. The morphology and dimensions of the teeth of Panthera spelaea fossilis , Hystrix brachyura , Dryomys nitedula , Arvicola amphibius, mice of genus Apodemus are described. The compositions of the palynocomplexes and mammal fauna as well as the SDQ values for m1 of Arvicola amphibius allow us to date the deposits from the Makhnevskaya Ledyanaya Cave to the Eemian interglacial period (MIS 5e). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the present-day distributional boundary between the European badger (Meles meles) and the Asian badger (Meles leucurus) is around the Volga River, studies of ancient bone remains have indicated changes in the distribution of M. meles and M. leucurus in the Urals–Volga region during the Holocene. To examine past changes in distribution using genetic data, changes in genetic diversity, and the relationships of Holocene to modern populations, we sequenced ~150 bp of the mitochondrial DNA control region from the 44 ancient badger remains excavated from European Russian, Ural and Western Siberian sites, and we detected 12 haplotypes. Our study revealed Holocene changes in the distributional boundary between these badger species. Meles meles inhabited the Ural Mountains east of the Volga River in the Early Holocene, whereas M. leucurus expanded its distribution westwards, starting ~2500 years ago. Thereafter, M. leucurus rapidly replaced M. meles in the region between the Urals and the Volga, resulting in the present-day boundary in the Volga–Kama region. Among the 12 haplotypes detected, three for M. leucurus and four for M. meles were identical to partial sequences of haplotypes detected in modern populations, indicating considerable genetic continuity between Holocene and modern populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Aim: The status of geographical units within species and species complexes is debated for many taxa, with many molecular studies failing to detect phenotypically defined subspecies. The history and longevity of geographical patterns are also generally very poorly understood. We examine Holarctic red deer (Cervus elaphus and related forms), incorporating ancient DNA to ask whether the present phylogeography has persisted through climatic perturbations or is a relatively recent phenomenon. Location: Holarctic (Europe, northern Asia and North America). Methods: We obtained 21 modern and 30 Holocene and Late Pleistocene samples, which together with published data resulted in 180 individuals spanning 21 nominal extant and one extinct subspecies. Phylogenetic analyses were carried out on 748‐bp of mitochondrial DNA (cytochrome b and control region). Where possible, the morphology of DNA‐yielding ancient samples was examined to assess subspecies identity. Results: Major clades within the red deer complex are upheld, but subspecies within them receive varying support. The ancient phylogeographical structure conforms in significant part to the modern situation, but some haplogroups no longer survive. Moreover, there have been substantial shifts in geographical ranges through time. Wapitoids spread as far west as Romania in the last glaciation, and elaphoids reached eastward to the Ural Mountains. A possible contact zone between the two lineages stretched from the Urals through the Crimea to Eastern Europe. Main conclusions: Ancient DNA and morphology are strongly complementary in elucidating population history. Through the past 50 kyr, the major lineages of red deer, and some of the subspecies groups within them, have maintained their genetic and morphological integrity and their core geographical distributions, despite range expansions and contractions and likely contact between the haplogroups (with potential for hybridization). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mustela nivalis, the smallest member of the family Mustelidae, is widely distributed in the Holarctic region and shows high geographical variation. To further understand the molecular evolution of major histocompatibility complex (MHC), we sequenced part of MHC class II DRB gene exon 2, including codons encoding the antigen binding site (ABS), from 35 individuals from Finland, Bulgaria, Russia, and Japan. We detected 27 species-specific alleles (Muni- DRBs), some of which were broadly distributed and others geographically restricted. The ratio of nonsynonymous to synonymous substitution rates for predicted ABS codons exceeded 1, though not statistically significant. In addition, the single break point recombination (SBP) and mixed-effects model evolution (MEME) analyses demonstrated a recombination site and positive selection sites that could be committed to maintain the diversity of Muni-DRBs. In a Bayesian phylogenetic tree, all Muni-DRBs grouped within a Mustelidae clade. The Muni-DRBs showed transspecies polymorphism in related Mustela species that could have appeared to be evolved under long-lasting balancing selection. However, the sister-group patterns suggested that Mustela itatsi and Mustela sibirica alleles are much more closely related to one another than either are to M. nivalis alleles. This result correlates with the large genetic distance separating M. nivalis from M. itatsi or M. sibirica, data for which we have previously reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on previous molecular and morphological analyses, Eurasian badgers are currently classified into Meles meles distributed in Europe, M. canescens in the Caucasus and Middle East, M. leucurus in continental Asia and M. anakuma in Japan. The precise locations of their distribution boundaries are still unclear. Therefore, in the present study, we clarified the phylogenetic relationships in the genus Meles around its distribution boundaries, based on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosomal genes. From 71 badgers examined, 29 mtDNA haplotypes were identified, including new 26 types. Multiple haplotypes of SRY and CAN-SINEs were identified from 23 males, including two new haplotypes of SRY . The mtDNA phylogeny showed that the Ural Mountains were not a current distribution boundary between M. meles and M. leucurus . In addition, our results supported the hypothesis that the Bosphorus Strait is a geographical barrier between M. meles and M. canescens . The badgers from Bulgaria north of the Bosphorus Strait shared haplotypes with M. meles . On the other hand, badgers from Far Eastern Russia distributed in the eastern peripheral region of the Asian Continent had haplotypes of M. leucurus . The badgers from Norway and Finland shared haplotypes with M. meles . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several new finds of the Late Pleistocene porcupine ( Hystrix brachyura vinogradovi ) in the Altai Mountains of southern Siberia and the Urals occur far north of previously assigned range for porcupine. These finds have necessitated a renewed study of this species's chronology and spatial distribution. We conclude that the oldest records of this porcupine in the Ural Mountains date to MIS 5e, and its geographic range possibly included also the Altai at that time. Directly radiocarbon-dated porcupine bones in the Altai fall in MIS 3 (ca. 32,000–41,000 cal BP). It is the northernmost record of this species and the youngest find outside its current geographic range. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We studied crown morphology of Martes foina , M. martes , and M. zibellina from different regions of the northern Eurasia and described its morphotypes. The following has been identified: three morphotypes for P3, eight morphotypes for P4, 16 morphotypes for M1, four morphotypes for i3, three morphotypes for p3, four morphotypes for p4, nine morphotypes for m1, and three morphotypes for m2. Morphotypes for P4, i3, m1, and m2 are described for the first time. Morphotype frequency is given for each species. It was found that 3 teeth (i3, m1, and m2) are enough for differentiation of the sable, stone marten, and pine marten. We used the above-mentioned dental patterns for species identification of the teeth belonging to the representatives of the genus Martes from archaeological sites of the southern Urals. M. foina , M. martes , and M. zibellina inhabited the territory under study in the Holocene. We have also given some consideration to the morphotypes of Tertiary and Quaternary members of the genus Martes and come to preliminary conclusions about evolutionary trends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of the Tanalyk River valley (Trans-Uralian area, Bashkortostan Republic, Russia) between the Late Pleistocene and the Late Holocene has been established through biostratigraphic investigations. The Tanalyk Bronze Age settlement is located on the first overflood terrace of the Tanalyk River. From the base to the top, this terrace consists of fluvial and lacustrine deposits of the Tabulda horizon, water-slope deposits of the Kudashevo horizon (Late Pleistocene), and subaerial deposits of the Middle and Upper Holocene. During the Late Pleistocene, open landscapes covered by herbs-Artemisia-Chenopodiaceae meadow-steppe associations with Ephedra sp. admixture dominated. Betula and Pinus forests grew in small areas. Picea with Polypodiaceae understory grew in humid valleys. The climate was warm and dry during the Tabulda and cold during the Kudashevo. The subaerial Holocene deposits (soil and cultural layer) were correlated with the Boreal and Subboreal periods of the Blytt–Sernander scale. The late Subboreal climate was cold and dry. The vegetation of this period was represented by Artemisia-Chenopodiaceae steppe and by small Pinus forests with Betula, Tilia and Alnus. The climate of the Subatlantic was wet at the beginning and drier at the end. The vegetation of this period was represented mainly by the Artemisia steppe associations. Small mammals, and land and freshwater mollusc remains have been discovered in the same deposits and complete the palaeoecological characteristic of these periods. A cultural layer has been dated at 2830 ± 110 BP LU-3713 on bones of Equus sp. Numerous Holocene large mammal remains have been found in the cultural layer deposits, dated to Subboreal-3. The large Holocene mammal fauna is constituted of eurybiotic species and species of semi-open landscapes. Bone remains of domestic animals dominate in the collection. Pastoral farming constituted the base of the economy of this ancient people, and the role of hunting was small. The investigated area is now covered by the waters of the Tanalyk water reservoir. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Remains of a male woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius Blumenbach, 1799), radiocarbon dated to cal. 18,370 14C BP, were discovered in perennially frozen deposits in northern West Siberia (Gydan Peninsula, 72°10′ N, 79°35′ E). Microfossil and macrofossil samples from the inner part of the mammoth intestinal content, samples of the coat and skull taken from the mammoth carcass and samples of frozen deposits enclosing the carcass were studied for the purpose of reconstructing the mammoth’s diet, season of death, and its living environments. Pollen, biomorphs and plant macrofossils indicate that grasses and sedges were the main food items, supplemented with small amounts of dwarf birch and larch twigs and a variety of herbs and mosses. The plant remains found in the intestines indicate that the animal died in the middle of summer. The mammoth lived in a cold tundra-like environment with sedge-grass and dwarf shrub communities and scattered larch stands. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The article presents the results of a complex investigation of the intestinal content of the frozen mummy of a baby woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius Blumenbach, 1799) found in 2007 in the Yamal Peninsula (Western Siberia). The mummy belongs to a female mammoth calf approximately 1–1.5 months of age, and it has been named “Lyuba”. Analysis of bone tissue yielded a 14C date of 41,910 (+550/−450) years ago. Analysis of detritus material from the large intestine yielded a 14C date of 41,700 (+700/−550) years ago. These dates practically coincide, thus denoting synchronism of the time of the baby mammoth’s death and the formation of its intestinal contents. This time correspond to the middle part of MIS 3, or the Middle Weichselian Pleniglacial. Pollen, phytolith, plant macrofossil and mineral analyses of the intestinal content were carried out. Reconstruction of the environment where the baby mammoth lived is given based on the intestinal content analyses. The data suggest that the baby mammoth lived in tundra-like landscapes dominated by grass–sedge communities with forbs and Betula nana. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Data from the mammal fauna of the North Urals during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene are synthesised. Analysis of differentiation the degree of small- and large-mammal faunas during this time has been undertaken. Only differences of mammal species composition were significant between the Late Pleistocene and Holocene complexes, and within these complexes, the distinction between faunas was insignificant. The transition from the Late Pleistocene to the Holocene complex small-mammal faunas occurred in the Middle Late Valdai due to expansion of the forest species. In large-mammal faunas, the process was recorded later (in Dryas 3-Early Holocene) because of the extinction of some species and others that changed their areas of occupation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The 121 local faunas of large mammals from Late Pleistocene sites of the South (56–51°N), Middle (59–56°N) and North (64–59°N) Urals have been studied. All local faunas were combined into eight chronological groups on the basis of radiocarbon dates and the evolutionary level of rodents present in them. On the basis of species composition analysis of the faunas, three chronological complexes have been distinguished: Mikulino, Early–Middle Valdai and Late Valdai. The first is characterized by the presence of Hystrix vinogradovi and Ursus thibetanus; the second, by the presence of a large form of horse (Equus (E.) cf. latipes), Crocuta crocuta, Ursus spelaeus and U. savini; the third, by the presence of a small horse (E. uralensis) and absence of U. spelaeus, U. savini and C. crocuta. The latter two complexes were represented by three geographical variants: southern (South Urals), northern (North Urals) and transitional (Middle Urals). Differences between theriocomplexes are related to changes in morphology and areas and extinctions of a series of species. The existence of chronological theriocomplexes and their geographical variants was determined by chronological and geographical change in structure of paleophytocoenoses. It should be noted that the role of human in changes of chronological complexes and species extinctions in the Late Pleistocene has not been demonstrated in the Urals. In the Urals U. savini probably became extinct at the end of the Middle Valdai, C. crocuta at the beginning of the last glacial maximum (LGM), U. spelaeus at the end of the LGM, Coelodonta antiquitatis at the beginning of the Preboreal and Megaloceros giganteus at the middle of the Atlantic. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

We present an analysis and interpretation of current knowledge on Paleolithic diet in Siberia and Eastern Europe, based on C and N stable isotope ratios in bone collagen of the pre-Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and LGM hominins: three Neanderthals; one possible Denisovan; a Neanderthal/Denisovan hybrid; and 13 early anatomically modern humans (AMH). We used animal stable isotope information for Siberia obtained previously to establish the baselines for hominins; this is supplemented by stable isotope values for large mammals from the central West Siberian Lowland which were the probable sources of protein for Paleolithic humans in this region (first of all, the oldest directly radiocarbon-dated Ust’-Ishim AMH in Asia). A comparison of results on Paleolithic hominin diet from Siberia and Eastern Europe with Central Europe was also undertaken. The Neanderthal diet in Siberia was based on the consumption of terrestrial animal protein. As for the Neanderthal/Denisovan hybrid from Denisova Cave (Altai Mountains, southern Siberia), the contribution of aquatic food like freshwater fish can be preliminarily suggested. Overall, Paleolithic AMHs in Siberia and Eastern Europe procured mainly terrestrial herbivores—in particular, reindeer, horse, and bison. It is possible that some of the oldest AMH individuals—like Kostenki 1—supplemented their diet with a certain amount of aquatic food (freshwater fish). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Global warming at the border of Late Pleistocene-Holocene, around ten thousand years ago caused a dramatic rearrangement of habitats in the Northern Hemisphere. Populations of cold-adapted megafauna species, which were spread over large areas of Eurasia, did not survive it. At the same time, small representatives of this mammoth fauna complex survived, including lemmings and arctic fox, but greatly reduced their distribution northward. However, it is uncertain whether species survived by habitat tracking the elusive tundra, or if they came from other places where they survived warming, and local populations died out without leaving descendants. To answer this, we studied ancient DNA from new fossil remains of arctic foxes from caves in the northern and polar Urals. The data received do not show any connectivity between ancient and modern individuals, supporting the hypothesis of local extinction of arctic fox in the region rather than the tracking habitat hypothesis. These findings are important in light of global climate warming expectations. It is predicted that the most severe effects are expected to occur in high-latitude biomes and the results obtained must be kept in mind when planning conservation policy measures. Despite the high level of interest, the population history of arctic foxes during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene remains poorly understood. Here we aimed to fill gaps in the demographic and colonization history of the arctic fox by analyzing new ancient DNA data from fossil specimens aged from 50 to 1 thousand years from the Northern and Polar Urals, historic DNA from museum specimens from the Novaya Zemlya Archipelago and the Taymyr Peninsula and supplementing these data by previously published sequences of recent and extinct arctic foxes from other regions. This dataset was used for reconstruction of a time-calibrated phylogeny and a temporal haplotype network covering four time intervals: Late Pleistocene (ranging from 30 to 13 thousand years bp), Holocene (ranging from 4 to 1 thousand years bp), historical (approximately 150 years), and modern. Our results revealed that Late Pleistocene specimens showed no genetic similarity to either modern or historical specimens, thus supporting the earlier hypothesis on local extinction rather than habitat tracking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Late Quaternary climate oscillations had major impacts on species distributions and abundances across the northern Holarctic. While many large mammals in this region went extinct towards the end of the Quaternary, some species survived and flourished. Here, we examine population dynamics and range shifts of one of the most widely distributed of these, the moose (Alces alces). Location: Northern Holarctic. Taxon: Moose (A. alces). Methods: We collected samples of modern and ancient moose from across their present and former range. We assessed their phylogeographical relations using part of the mitochondrial DNA in conjunction with radiocarbon dating to investigate the history of A. alces during the last glacial. Results: This species has a relatively shallow history, with the most recent common ancestor estimated at ca. 150–50 kyr. Ancient samples corroborate that its region of greatest diversity is in east Asia, supporting proposals that this is the region of origin of all extant moose. Both eastern and western haplogroups occur in the Ural Mountains during the last glacial period, implying a broader contact zone than previously proposed. It seems that this species went extinct over much of its northern range during the last glacial maximum (LGM) and recolonized the region with climate warming beginning around 15,000 yr bp. The post‐LGM expansion included a movement from northeast Siberia to North America via Beringia, although the northeast Siberian source population is not the one currently occupying that area. Main conclusions: Moose are a relatively recently evolved species but have had a dynamic history. As a large‐bodied subarctic browsing species, they were seemingly confined to refugia during full‐glacial periods and expanded their range northwards when the boreal forest returned after the LGM. The main modern phylogeographical division is ancient, though its boundary has not remained constant. Moose population expansion into America was roughly synchronous with human and red deer expansion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The taxonomic status of the now likely extirpated Korean Peninsula wolf has been extensively debated, with some arguing it represents an independent wolf lineage, Canis coreanus. To investigate the Korean wolf's genetic affiliations and taxonomic status, we sequenced and analysed the genomes of a Korean wolf dated to the beginning of the 20th century, and a captive wolf originally from the Pyongyang Central Zoo. Our results indicated that the Korean wolf bears similar genetic ancestry to other regional East Asian populations, therefore suggesting it is not a distinct taxonomic lineage. We identified regional patterns of wolf population structure and admixture in East Asia with potential conservation consequences in the Korean Peninsula and on a regional scale. We find that the Korean wolf has similar genomic diversity and inbreeding to other East Asian wolves. Finally, we show that, in contrast to the historical sample, the captive wolf is genetically more similar to wolves from the Tibetan Plateau; hence, Korean wolf conservation programmes might not benefit from the inclusion of this specimen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Morphometric and morphotypic variability of the cave bear upper incisors from two different geographic regions (Caucasus and Urals), different stratigraphic periods (middle and late Pleistocene), and bearing different mitochondrial haplogroups (kudarensis and ingressus) was studied. The specific diet of the cave bears, i.e. hard vegetables, led to noticeable differences between their incisors and the incisors of the brown bear (Ursus arctos). It was found that the upper incisors of the Caucasian cave bears from different stratigraphic periods demonstrate consistent development of their morphology. The late Pleistocene cave bears from the Urals show a greater similarity to the Caucasian cave bears from earlier periods than with the cave bears from later periods. Our results suggest that the incisor morphology has evolved independently in the Caucasian and Ural cave bears as they belong to different phylogenetic lineages and display different ways of adaptation to local environmental conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes encode proteins that play a key role in the adaptive immune system of vertebrates and are generally highly polymorphic for defence against various pathogens. To understand the diversity and evolution of MHC variation in badgers in the genus Meles (Carnivora, Mustelidae), we analysed sequence variation of the MHC class II DRB gene exon 2 in the Japanese (Meles anakuma), Asian (Meles leucurus), European (Meles meles) and Southwest Asian (Meles canescens) badgers. Variation was higher in the Meles species than in other species in Mustelidae, and altogether 60 alleles were isolated from 28 individuals. The variable number of three to eight putative alleles per individual was observed, indicating the presence of two to four DRB loci per haploid genome. Non-synonymous substitutions exceeded synonymous substitutions at putative antigen-binding sites. Selection analyses of PAML models, fixed-effect likelihood and mixed-effect model evolution, together with the single breakpoint recombination, indicated that recombination and selection could be responsible for driving and maintaining the diversity of Meles DRBs. In a phylogenetic analysis, the DRB sequences from Meles were distributed in several clusters, which were dispersed among sequences of other mustelid family, even five alleles comprised a monophyletic group of Meles DRBs within a canid clade. The data demonstrate trans-species polymorphisms at different taxonomic and temporal scales, transgressing family-, genus- and species-level splits. Some allele sequences were shared by two to four of the Meles species, in line with a close phylogenetic relationship among these species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyzed the complete mitochondrial genome for 26 individuals of the endemic Japanese weasel (Mustela itatsi) and 20 individuals of its continental sister species, the Siberian weasel (Mustela sibirica). These species diverged an estimated 1.19 Mya, in the Early Pleistocene. Mustela itatsi comprised two haplotype clades that diverged an estimated 0.93 Mya, in the Middle Pleistocene: a northern (Honshu) clade comprising geographically distinct basal, northern, and eastern subclades, and a western paraphyletic group, as well as a southern clade comprising geographically distinct subclades on Kyushu, Shikoku, and adjacent small islands. Our results indicate a single migration of an ancestral population from the Korean Peninsula to southern Japan across an Early Pleistocene land bridge, followed by allopatric speciation of M. itatsi in Japan. The southern lineage appears to have remained in place, whereas the range of the northern lineage expanded stepwise from southwestern to northern Honshu between 0.31 and 0.11 Mya. Mustela sibirica also comprised two main clades that diverged an estimated 0.67 Mya; one containing haplotypes from continental Russia and Tsushima Island (Japan), and the other containing haplotypes from Korea, China, and Taiwan. The M. sibirica population on Tsushima Island is likely a relict from the continental Russian population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bering Land Bridge connecting North America and Eurasia was periodically exposed and inundated by oscillating sea levels during the Pleistocene glacial cycles. This land connection allowed the intermittent dispersal of animals, including humans, between Western Beringia (far northeast Asia) and Eastern Beringia (northwest North America), changing the faunal community composition of both continents. The Pleistocene glacial cycles also had profound impacts on temperature, precipitation and vegetation, impacting faunal community structure and demography. While these palaeoenvironmental impacts have been studied in many large herbivores from Beringia (e.g., bison, mammoths, horses), the Pleistocene population dynamics of the diverse guild of carnivorans present in the region are less well understood, due to their lower abundances. In this study, we analyse mitochondrial genome data from ancient brown bears (Ursus arctos; n = 103) and lions (Panthera spp.; n = 39), two megafaunal carnivorans that dispersed into North America during the Pleistocene. Our results reveal striking synchronicity in the population dynamics of Beringian lions and brown bears, with multiple waves of dispersal across the Bering Land Bridge coinciding with glacial periods of low sea levels, as well as synchronous local extinctions in Eastern Beringia during Marine Isotope Stage 3. The evolutionary histories of these two taxa underline the crucial biogeographical role of the Bering Land Bridge in the distribution, turnover and maintenance of megafaunal populations in North America. see also the Perspective by Stephen J. Gaughran and Bridgett vonHoldt [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using an ethnoarcheological perspective we examine Nenets site formation, seasonality and landscape usage in controlling reindeer herds in a complex system of more than 20 abandoned campsites and other sites of interest over 100 km and a time-span of several decades. We establish a chronology based on more than 150 expiration dates from imported food items, supported by additional seasonal evidence such as presence/absence of newborn reindeer, hearths and other artifacts. We separated the sites into five stages and compared the patterns of change, especially from 1986 to 2003 as the road and railroad connecting the Yamal gas mining fields were constructed nearby. We find that the impact of road and rail construction is reflected in the increase of imported goods upon its completion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present phylogeographic pattern of red deer in Eurasia is not only a result of the contraction of their distribution range into glacial refugia and postglacial expansion, but probably also an effect of replacement of some red deer s.l. mtDNA lineages by others during the last 50 000 years. To better recognize this process, we analysed 501 sequences of mtDNA cytochrome b , including 194 ancient and 75 contemporary samples newly obtained for this study. The inclusion of 161 radiocarbon-dated samples enabled us to study the phylogeny in a temporal context and conduct divergence-time estimation and molecular dating. Depending on methodology, our estimate of divergence between Cervus elaphus and Cervus canadensis varied considerably (370 000 or 1.37 million years BP, respectively). The divergence times of genetic lineages and haplogroups corresponded to large environmental changes associated with stadials and interstadials of the Late Pleistocene. Due to the climatic oscillations, the distribution of C. elaphus and C. canadensis fluctuated in north–south and east–west directions. Some haplotypes dated to pre-Last Glacial Maximum periods were not detected afterwards, representing possibly extinct populations. We indicated with a high probability the presence of red deer sensu lato in south-eastern Europe and western Asia during the Last Glacial Maximum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seven species of red-toothed shrews (Sorex araneus, Sorex isodon, Sorex tundrensis, Sorex caecutiens, Sorex minutus, Sorex minutissimus, Neomys fodiens), white-toothed shrews (Crocidura sp.), moles (Talpa sp.) and hedgehogs (Erinaceus sp.) were found in Late Pleistocene and Holocene deposits of the southern part of the western slope of the Ural Mountains. In the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene deposits, the red-toothed shrews were dominated by S. tundrensis. This species disappeared from the area by the Late Holocene, when S. araneus became the predominant species. Smaller mandibular sizes have been registered for S. araneus in the Middle and Late Holocene, as compared to the sizes of older samples. The morphometric criteria have been established for a species differential diagnosis of the Late Pleistocene – Early Holocene mandibular samples of S. araneus and S. tundrensis , found in local deposits of the southern Pre-Urals area studied. • Bones of insectivorous mammals (10 taxons) were found in the deposits of caves and grottoes in the southern Pre-Urals. • Sorex tundrensis was dominant species in the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene deposits. • Fossil Sorex araneus and Sorex tundrensis are well differentiated by three morphometric parameters. • Temporal variability was traced within the samples of mandibles of Sorex araneus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A well-preserved woolly mammoth calf found in northwest Siberia offers unique opportunities to investigate mammoth anatomy, behavior, life history and taphonomy. Analysis of the fluvial setting where the specimen was found suggests it was derived from eroding bluffs during ice-out flooding in June 2006. It then lay exposed on a point-bar surface until recovery the following May. AMS dating of bone collagen and plant tissues from the intestine provide age estimates that average about 41,800 14C yrBP. Anatomical features of interest include a hemispherical mass, apparently composed of brown fat, on the back of the neck. This may have functioned in thermoregulation for the neonate mammoth, born before onset of spring. Abundant subcutaneous fat and milk residues in the alimentary tract demonstrate that this animal was in good nutritional condition before death, making other features of its life history relevant for general studies of mammoth paleobiology. Plant remains from the intestine (mixed with milk residue in a manner consistent with frequent, small meals) show evidence of mastication by adult mammoths, suggesting that this calf ingested fecal material, probably from its mother and presumably to inoculate its intestinal tract with a microbial assemblage derived from a healthy adult. Discrepancies between the season of death we infer (spring) and seasonal indicators from the intestine implicate coprophagy (involving old fecal boli) by the mother. This animal’s trachea and bronchi are completely occluded with fine-grained vivianite (hydrated iron phosphate) such as occurs in some lacustrine settings. Because this vivianite does not penetrate the lung beyond the bronchi, we infer that it must have entered as a viscous mass that occluded the airway, causing asphyxia. Nodular vivianite in the cranial region and interiors of long bones must have originated postmortem, but its distribution may be partly controlled by peripheral vasoconstriction, a physiological response to asphyxia. Nodular vivianite may have formed from iron derived from hemoglobin and phosphate liberated by partial demineralization of bones. Demineralization could have been caused by lactic acid, for which the main evidence is loss of tissues dominated by Type 1 collagen (denatured in lactic acid). We propose that this was consequent on postmortem colonization of the body by lactic acid-producing bacteria. These bacteria and their metabolites may have promoted preservation during the time before the body was incorporated in permafrost and could also have inhibited scavenging and bacterial decomposition following recent exposure of the specimen. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The aim of this paper is to present and discuss empirical evidence on the dynamics of occupation and site formation processes from contemporary mobile campsites in Northwest Siberia. The questions posed are derived generally from archaeological studies of Upper Paleolithic record in Europe. We document the active Nenets summer camps at lakes and the abandoned winter and spring camps in the open tundra and the forest tundra. Analysis of the floral and zoological resources shows that plant resources and fish are available predominantly in the summer while reindeer are abundant in these regions in fall and winter when they return from summer pastures further north. When natural resources are not available, groups supplement with food purchased at shops. Within these living camps, “structures évidentes” and “structures latentes” of classical French paleoethnology cannot be distinguished as clearly as at Upper Paleolithic sites: and architectural remains, ash from hearths, and other objects may be removed from the central areas towards the site peripheries. However the investigated camps preserve a discrete structure with interior living areas (including children’s playgrounds), exterior areas with evidence of reindeer carcass processing, woodworking, and other activities, peripheral toss zones, and dispersed activity remains in the surrounding landscape. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Dogs have been essential to life in the Siberian Arctic for over 9,500 y, and this tight link between people and dogs continues in Siberian communities. Although Arctic Siberian groups such as the Nenets received limited gene flow from neighboring groups, archaeological evidence suggests that metallurgy and new subsistence strategies emerged in Northwest Siberia around 2,000 y ago. It is unclear if the Siberian Arctic dog population was as continuous as the people of the region or if instead admixture occurred, possibly in relation to the influx of material culture from other parts of Eurasia. To address this question, we sequenced and analyzed the genomes of 20 ancient and historical Siberian and Eurasian Steppe dogs. Our analyses indicate that while Siberian dogs were genetically homogenous between 9,500 to 7,000 y ago, later introduction of dogs from the Eurasian Steppe and Europe led to substantial admixture. This is clearly the case in the Iamal-Nenets region (Northwestern Siberia) where dogs from the Iron Age period (~2,000 y ago) possess substantially less ancestry related to European and Steppe dogs than dogs from the medieval period (~1,000 y ago). Combined with findings of nonlocal materials recovered from these archaeological sites, including glass beads and metal items, these results indicate that Northwest Siberian communities were connected to a larger trade network through which they acquired genetically distinctive dogs from other regions. These exchanges were part of a series of major societal changes, including the rise of large-scale reindeer pastoralism ~800 y ago. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paleolithic antiquity of parietal art in Ignatievskaya cave, Southern Ural, is supported by its subject (Late Pleistocene animals) as well as by paleontological and palynological data, and 14C dates from cultural layers associated with artistic activity (17.8−16.3 cal ka BP; association is established by finds of ochre in these layers). However, three 14C dates of charcoal motifs yielded younger, Holocene ages (7.4−6.0 cal ka BP). In this study, we constrain the age of parietal art in the cave by 230Th dating of flowstone that brackets the paintings. Flowstone did not form in the cave between c. 78 and 10 ka BP, due to widespread permafrost in northern Eurasia at that time. Our 230Th dates do not support the middle Holocene age of art in Ignatievskaya cave and are consistent with its Upper Paleolithic antiquity instead. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The Expansion‐Contraction model has been used to explain the responses of species to climatic changes. During periods of unfavourable climatic conditions, species retreat to refugia from where they may later expand. This paper focuses on the palaeoecology of red deer over the past 54 ka across Europe and the Urals, to reveal patterns of change in their range and explore the role of environmental conditions in determining their distribution. Location: Europe and western Asia to 63°E. Taxon: Red deer (Cervus elaphus). Methods: We collected 984 records of radiocarbon‐dated red deer subfossils from the Late Pleistocene and the Holocene, including 93 original dates. For each deer sample we compiled climatic and biome type data for the corresponding time intervals. Results: During the last 54 ka changes in red deer range in Europe and the Urals were asynchronous and differed between western and eastern Europe and western Asia due to different environmental conditions in those regions. The range of suitable areas for deer during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) was larger than previously thought and covered vast regions not only in southern but also in western and eastern Europe. Throughout the period investigated the majority of specimens inhabited forests in the temperate climatic zone. The contribution of forests in deer localities significantly decreased during the last 4 ka, due to deforestation of Europe caused by humans. Mean January temperature was the main limiting factor for species distribution. Over 90% of the samples were found in areas where mean January temperature was above −10°C. Main conclusions: Red deer response to climatic oscillations are in agreement with the Expansion‐Contraction model but in contradiction to the statement of only the southernmost LGM refugia of the species. During the last 54 ka red deer occurred mostly in forests of the temperate climatic zone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Body size is correlated with many critical behavioral and developmental patterns in carnivores, including domestic dogs. The body masses and bite forces of archaeological dog remains from Siberia and the Russian Far East were estimated to make inferences regarding their behaviors and capacitis. The dogs date from ∼10,000–100 cal. BP and derive from archaeological sites spanning from steppe environments in the south to tundra regions of the northern Arctic. The dogs exhibit a four-fold difference in body mass, ranging from 7.6 to 32.5 kg, but have a mean body mass of only 16.4 kg. Bite forces are around only half those of modern wolves, indicating that the dogs had greatly reduced abilities to grasp and masticate prey and food items. The dogs exhibit a slight decrease in body size through time, perhaps due to human selection or greater survival rates for smaller individuals in human-dominated food environments. Dog body size variance within individual archaeological sites was as high as in a sample of modern wolves from throughout the study area, suggesting little strict human control over body size. No correlation was found between body size and site latitude, suggesting that Bergmann's rule does not hold for these canids. Human shelters may provide a buffer against low temperatures that might favour larger body sizes at high latitudes. About 90% of the analyzed dogs have estimated body masses less than 21.5 kg, suggesting most were best adapted for procuring prey smaller than themselves—the dogs were not capable of taking down larger prey without the assistance of humans. Estimated dog body masses cannot eliminate the possibility that many of the animals were used for pulling sleds, and nearly all were capable of packing modest loads on their backs. Livestock guarding dogs are not well-evidenced by the body mass data, but herding dogs are a possibility in all of the pastoral or agricultural settings analyzed. Image 1 • Body masses and bite forces were estimated for 199 archaeological dog remains from Siberia and the Russian Far East. • The dogs' body masses range from 7.6 to 32.5 kg, with a mean of 16.4 kg. • The dogs' bite forces are around half those of modern wolves. • The dogs exhibit a slight decrease in body size through time. • Many of the dogs were of sufficient size to pull sleds, and all could have carried packs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Just as the domestication of livestock is often cited as a key element in the Neolithic transition to settled, the emergence of large‐scaled reindeer husbandry was a fundamental social transformation for the indigenous peoples of Arctic Eurasia. To better understand the history of reindeer domestication, and the genetic processes associated with the pastoral transition in the Eurasian Arctic, we analyzed archaeological and contemporary reindeer samples from Northwestern Siberia. The material represents Rangifer genealogies spanning from 15,000 years ago to the 18th century, as well as modern samples from the wild Taĭmyr population and from domestic herds managed by Nenetses. The wild and the domestic population are the largest populations of their kind in Northern Eurasia, and some Nenetses hold their domestic reindeer beside their wild cousins. Our analyses of 197 modern and 223 ancient mitochondrial DNA sequences revealed two genetic clusters, which are interpreted as representing the gene pools of contemporary domestic and past wild reindeer. Among a total of 137 different mitochondrial haplotypes identified in both the modern and archaeological samples, only 21 were detected in the modern domestic gene pool, while 11 of these were absent from the wild gene pool. The significant temporal genetic shift that we associate with the pastoral transition suggests that the emergence and spread of reindeer pastoralism in Northwestern Siberia originated with the translocation and subsequent selective breeding of a special type of animal from outside the region. The distinct and persistent domestic characteristics of the haplotype structure since the 18th century suggests little genetic exchange since then. The absence of the typical domestic clade in modern nearby wild populations suggests that the contemporary Nenets domestic breed feature an ancestry from outside its present main distribution, possibly from further South. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cave lion is an extinct felid that was widespread across the Holarctic throughout the Late Pleistocene. Its closest extant relative is the lion (Panthera leo), but the timing of the divergence between these two taxa, as well as their taxonomic ranking are contentious. In this study we analyse 31 mitochondrial genome sequences from cave lion individuals that, through a combination of 14C and genetic tip dating, are estimated to be from dates extending well into the mid-Pleistocene. We identified two deeply diverged and well-supported reciprocally monophyletic mitogenome clades in the cave lion, and an additional third distinct lineage represented by a single individual. One of these clades was restricted to Beringia while the other was prevalent across western Eurasia. These observed clade distributions are in line with previous observations that Beringian and European cave lions were morphologically distinct. The divergence dates for these lineages are estimated to be far older than those between extant lions subspecies. By combining our radiocarbon tip-dates with a split time prior that takes into account the most up-to-date fossil stem calibrations, we estimated the mitochondrial DNA divergence between cave lions and lions to be 1.85 Million ya (95% 0.52– 2.91 Mya). Taken together, these results support previous hypotheses that cave lions existed as at least two subspecies during the Pleistocene, and that lions and cave lions were distinct species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The least weasel (Mustela nivalis) is one of the most widely distributed carnivorans. While previous studies have identified distinct western and eastern mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) lineages of the species in the western Palearctic, their broader distributions across the Palearctic have remained unknown. To address the broad‐scale phylogeographical structure, we expanded the sampling to populations in Eastern Europe, the Urals, the Russian Far East, and Japan, and analyzed the mtDNA control region and cytochrome b, the final intron of the zinc finger protein on Y chromosome (ZFY), and the autosomal agouti signaling protein gene (ASIP). The mtDNA data analysis exposed the previous western lineage (Clade I) but poorly supported assemblage extending across Palearctic, whereas the previous eastern lineage (Clade II) was reconfirmed and limited in the south western part of the Palearctic. The ZFY phylogeny showed a distinctive split that corresponding to the mtDNA lineage split, although less phylogeographical structure was seen in the ASIP variation. Our data concur with the previous inference of the Black Sea–Caspian Sea area having an ancestral character. The Urals region harbored high mitochondrial diversity, with an estimated coalescent time of around 100,000 years, suggesting this could have been a cryptic refugium. Based on the coalescent‐based demographic reconstructions, the expansion of Clade I across the Palearctic was remarkably rapid, while Clade II was relatively stable for a longer time. It seems that Clade II has maintained a constant population size in the temperate region, and the expansive Clade I represents adaptation to the cold regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Domestication has particular salience in archaeology, and numerous recent theoretical papers describe this process as a set of evolutionary, ongoing, social, and material relationships between humans and select other species. In contrast, analytical papers on the domestication of dogs nearly always involve a search for their origins as marked by changes in genes and morphologies. This article explores this contrast through the examination of dog remains from the Iron Age Ust’-Polui site in the western Siberian Arctic. Many of the numerous dogs represented at this site were killed and probably consumed when young, likely as part of sacrifices. Others at the site were intentionally buried. Ust’-Polui also contains abundant evidence of advanced dog sledding, including probable harness parts and portions of several complex sleds. Sacrificing and otherwise killing dogs is a domestication practice, as these activities are a form of selective breeding. Domestication of dogs at Ust’-Polui and elsewhere is more than selective breeding, as it is enabled and dependent upon specific landscapes, built things, and other species. At Ust’-Polui these at a minimum included a rich local environment, sleds and harness swivels, and freshwater fish, all of which intertwined in making the particular domestic relationships at the site possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Sex-biased dispersal is widespread among mammals, including the brown bear (Ursus arctos). Previous phylogeographic studies of the brown bear based on maternally inherited mitochondrial DNA have shown intraspecific genetic structuring around the northern hemisphere. The brown bears on Hokkaido Island, northern Japan, comprise three distinct maternal lineages that presumably immigrated to the island from the continent in three different periods. Here, we investigate the paternal genetic structure across northeastern Asia and assess the connectivity among and within intraspecific populations in terms of male-mediated gene flow. Results: We analyzed paternally inherited Y-chromosomal DNA sequence data and Y-linked microsatellite data of 124 brown bears from Hokkaido, the southern Kuril Islands (Kunashiri and Etorofu), Sakhalin, and continental Eurasia (Kamchatka Peninsula, Ural Mountains, European Russia, and Tibet). The Hokkaido brown bear population is paternally differentiated from, and lacked recent genetic connectivity with, the continental Eurasian and North American populations. We detected weak spatial genetic structuring of the paternal lineages on Hokkaido, which may have arisen through male-mediated gene flow among natal populations. In addition, our results suggest that the different dispersal patterns between male and female brown bears, combined with the founder effect and subsequent genetic drift, contributed to the makeup of the Etorofu Island population, in which the maternal and paternal lineages show different origins. Conclusions: Brown bears on Hokkaido and the adjacent southern Kuril Islands experienced different maternal and paternal evolutionary histories. Our results indicate that sex-biased dispersal has played a significant role in the evolutionary history of the brown bear in continental populations and in peripheral insular populations, such as on Hokkaido, the southern Kuril Islands, and Sakhalin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Red deer (Cervus elaphus) is one of the species that is rather wide spread and survived across Europe over the Holocene. The analyses of carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes in bone collagen of ungulate remains have been applied in paleoecological studies as environmental and dietary indicators. In this study we present the carbon and nitrogen stable isotope compositions of previously radiocarbon-dated red deer bone samples (N = 68) found in Central, Southern and Eastern Europe and Asia and aligned to one of two species: European red deer (Cervus elaphus) and wapiti (Cervus canadensis). We showed that the values of carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios of European red deer and wapiti overlapped. Among all analysed independent factors (determined for the locality and time period relevant for each of the analysed samples), the variability of δ 13C values in European red deer dated to the Holocene is best explained by forest cover and mean July temperature, and variability of δ 15N values by the mean July temperature, annual precipitation and altitude. Additionally, combining the results of the present study with isotopic data on European red deer collected from published sources, we revealed that the values of δ 13C and of δ 15N in C. elaphus bones changed according to environmental oscillations that took place in Europe over the last 50 000 years. We concluded that red deer shifted their feeding habitats in relation to changing environmental conditions, for example, forest expansion during the climate warming, and in the mid to later Holocene in response to deforestation caused by human activity and the spread of agriculture. We also found out that red deer reacted in varied ways to changing local conditions in different regions of Europe. Modern individuals of C. elaphus had the lowest δ 13C values among all analysed specimens, so they probably inhabited the most densely forested areas in comparison to other European red deer populations during the last 50 000 years. • δ 13C and δ 15N values of ancient red deer and wapiti bones have been analysed. • We showed that δ 13C and δ 15N in deer fluctuated with environmental changes in Europe. • The values of δ 13C and δ 15N of red deer and wapiti overlapped. • Forest cover and July temperature influenced δ 13C values within Holocene deer bones. • Temperature, precipitation and altitude shaped δ 15N values within Holocene deer bones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent palaeogenetic studies indicate a highly dynamic history in collared lemmings ( Dicrostonyx spp.), with several demographical changes linked to climatic fluctuations that took place during the last glaciation. At the western range margin of D. torquatus, these changes were characterized by a series of local extinctions and recolonizations. However, it is unclear whether this pattern represents a local phenomenon, possibly driven by ecological edge effects, or a global phenomenon that took place across large geographical scales. To address this, we explored the palaeogenetic history of the collared lemming using a next-generation sequencing approach for pooled mitochondrial DNA amplicons. Sequences were obtained from over 300 fossil remains sampled across Eurasia and two sites in North America. We identified five mitochondrial lineages of D. torquatus that succeeded each other through time across Europe and western Russia, indicating a history of repeated population extinctions and recolonizations, most likely from eastern Russia, during the last 50 000 years. The observation of repeated extinctions across such a vast geographical range indicates large-scale changes in the steppe-tundra environment in western Eurasia during the last glaciation. All Holocene samples, from across the species' entire range, belonged to only one of the five mitochondrial lineages. Thus, extant D. torquatus populations only harbour a small fraction of the total genetic diversity that existed across different stages of the Late Pleistocene. In North American samples, haplotypes belonging to both D. groenlandicus and D. richardsoni were recovered from a Late Pleistocene site in south-western Canada. This suggests that D. groenlandicus had a more southern and D. richardsoni a more northern glacial distribution than previously thought. This study provides significant insights into the population dynamics of a small mammal at a large geographical scale and reveals a rather complex demographical history, which could have had bottom-up effects in the Late Pleistocene steppe-tundra ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Remarkable and intriguing is the discovery of Desman remains in Sed'yu-1 (Komi Republic, Russia) in the far northeast of Europe; finds that are dated to the Bølling Interstadial. Mammalian communities including desman are dominated by the Siberian lemming. A review of Lateglacial desman finds in Europe and the Urals as well as the contemporaneous mammalian communities in northeastern European are presented and the possible migration ways desmans used during the Lateglacial expansion are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present the high-quality genome sequence of a ∼45,000-year-old modern human male from Siberia. This individual derives from a population that lived before-or simultaneously with-the separation of the populations in western and eastern Eurasia and carries a similar amount of Neanderthal ancestry as present-day Eurasians. However, the genomic segments of Neanderthal ancestry are substantially longer than those observed in present-day individuals, indicating that Neanderthal gene flow into the ancestors of this individual occurred 7,000-13,000 years before he lived. We estimate an autosomal mutation rate of 0.4 × 10−9 to 0.6 × 10−9 per site per year, a Y chromosomal mutation rate of 0.7 × 10−9 to 0.9 × 10−9 per site per year based on the additional substitutions that have occurred in present-day non-Africans compared to this genome, and a mitochondrial mutation rate of 1.8 × 10−8 to 3.2 × 10−8 per site per year based on the age of the bone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While many species were confined to southern latitudes during the last glaciations, there has lately been mounting evidence that some of the most cold-tolerant species were actually able to survive close to the ice sheets. The contribution of these higher latitude outposts to the main recolonization thrust remains, however, untested. In the present study, we use the first range-wide survey of genetic diversity at cytoplasmic markers in Siberian larch ( Larix sibirica; four mitochondrial (mt) DNA loci and five chloroplast (cp) DNA SSR loci) to (i) assess the relative contributions of southern and central areas to the current L. sibirica distribution range; and (ii) date the last major population expansion in both L. sibirica and adjacent Larix species. The geographic distribution of cp DNA variation was uninformative, but that of mitotypes clearly indicates that the southernmost populations, located in Mongolia and the Tien-Shan and Sayan Mountain ranges, had a very limited contribution to the current populations of the central and northern parts of the range. It also suggests that the contribution of the high latitude cryptic refugia was geographically limited and that most of the current West Siberian Plain larch populations likely originated in the foothills of the Sayan Mountains. Interestingly, the main population expansion detected through Approximate Bayesian Computation ( ABC) in all four larch species investigated here pre-dates the LGM, with a mode in a range of 220 000-1 340 000 years BP. Hence, L. sibirica, like other major conifer species of the boreal forest, was strongly affected by climatic events pre-dating the Last Glacial Maximum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper summarises materials on the mammal remains in northeastern Europe, dated by radiocarbon. Altogether, 23 local faunas of small mammals and 47 local faunas of large mammals were analysed. Multidimensional statistical analysis shows a strong correlation between changes in small mammal fauna composition and climate changes throughout time. The correlations with the spatial gradients, however, are less pronounced. The faunas are classified into three groups: (1) faunas of Holocene age; (2) Late Pleistocene 'stadial' assemblages; and (3) Late Pleistocene 'interstadial' assemblages. In some cases, changes in species abundance are better understood in terms of biotic interrelations rather than of climatic effects. The most pronounced change in small mammal fauna composition and structure occurred at the Preboreal/ Boreal boundary, and a less conspicuous alteration took place at the LGM/Lateglacial transition. The most noticeable transformation in the large mammal fauna composition is dated to the early Holocene. Less significant changes are observed at the Middle Weichselian/ LGM transition and at the LGM/Lateglacial transition. It is safely concluded that variations in the faunas of small and large mammals recorded in NE Europe during the last 35 000 years occurred synchronously and unidirectionally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The Yamal mammoth calf “Lyuba” and the Oimyakon mammoth calf are two recently collected, mummified woolly mammoth calves both dating to around 41 ka. They offer opportunities to study the earliest parts of mammoth life history through microstructural and compositional analyses of tooth dentin. Understanding mammoth paleobiology is critical for assessing how populations might have responded to ecological changes in the late Pleistocene, and such assessment will aid in determining the likely cause(s) of extinction. The state of tooth eruption and wear in Lyuba suggests that she died quite young. Prominent constrictions in the roots of the dP2s and dP3 correspond to neonatal lines in the dentin of each tooth, marking the time of birth. The neonatal line in dP2 allowed us to estimate the duration of prenatal development, determine Lyuba’s age at death, and place birth in the context of variation in isotopic and elemental composition of the dentin. Growth increments and seasonal variation in δ15N indicate that Lyuba’s dP2 records over a year of prenatal development, suggesting duration of gestation was similar to that observed in elephants. Death occurred at about 30–35 days, and birth appears to have occurred in spring. The Oimyakon specimen represents an individual older (biologically) than Lyuba. The dP2s have been lost, and most plates of the dP3s are in wear. An unerupted permanent tusk is present, but no deciduous tusk is present in the single recovered premaxilla. The tusk exhibits a circumferential ridge at mid-length that represents the surface expression of a prominent growth line in the dentin. Based on its prominence and elevated dentin Zn/Ca in its vicinity, this is interpreted as a neonatal line. Its occurrence in the tusk is of interest because this implies initiation of permanent tusk mineralization months before birth— yet permanent tusks are not present in Lyuba. Differences in timing of tusk development may result from individual, population, or sexual variation. Growth increments in the tusk indicate death at an age of about 7 months with both δ15N and δ13C generally declining postnatally. The increment-based age at death is less than an estimate based on the state of cheek tooth eruption and wear (using extant elephants as references), implying that ages based on comparisons to elephants may be inaccurate. Counts of dentin growth increments combined with identification of seasonally varying aspects of dentin composition could be used to calibrate the cheek tooth aging system for Mammuthus primigenius. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Patterns in the spatial or temporal distribution of genotypes may be indicative of natural selection. Previous work on the woolly mammoth melanocortin-1 receptor (Mc1r) gene identified three polymorphic positions that suggest Pleistocene populations may have harboured both light- and dark-haired mammoths (, 313: 62). Here, we extend this work and present the first population-level analysis of a functional gene in an extinct species. We genotyped the Mc1r gene in 47 woolly mammoth samples excavated from sites across the central portion of the woolly mammoths’ former range to examine the extent of variation of this polymorphism through time and across space. Only one individual was found to be heterozygous, indicating that the frequency of the ‘light’ mutant allele was very low. We conclude that light-coloured woolly mammoths would have been very rare, and may even have been non-existent if the ‘light’ mutant allele was strongly selected against in its homozygotic form. With the increasing availability of large-scale sequencing technologies, population-level datasets capable of identifying local adaptation will become increasingly attainable. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Cave and terrace localities containing Upper Pleistocene and Holocene deposits have been biostratigraphically investigated in the mountainous part of the Southern Urals, in the latitudinal oriented valley of the Belaya River (Russian Federation). The main fieldwork was undertaken in 1999–2000. Its purpose was to save all the possible geological information before the building of the Yumaguzino reservoir. Nowadays, most of the localities described in the paper are under water. Biostratigraphical and archaeological data were studied at the same time (artefacts from the Late Palaeolitic to the Early Iron Age were found in the caves). The main characteristics of the Upper Quaternary terraces and of the cave deposits as well as the results of the paleontological investigations are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]