title: The first finding of Asian black bear (Carnivora, Ursidae, Ursus (Euarctos) thibetanus G. Cuvier, 1823) in the Late Pleistocene of northern Eurasia.
abstract: An M1 tooth of Asian black bear (Ursus (Euarctos) thibetanus G. Cuvier, 1823) was found in deposits of the Tetyukhinskaya cave (Middle Sikhote-Alin, 44°35'N, 135°36'E). This finding is the first reliable evidence of Asian black bear's presence in Pleistocene of Primorye. Its morphological and morphometric descriptions are given. The period of inhabitation of U. (E.) thibetanus determined based on the radiocarbon date obtained during the study of the tooth, is 39 874 ± 133 BP (NSK-850, UGAMS-21786), which corresponds to the middle of Marine Isotope Stage 3 (MIS 3) of Late Pleistocene. The composition of ancient theriofauna indicates the existence of wide variety of landscapes in Primorye in the middle of Late Pleistocene. A refugium of forest fauna, in which species of taiga, nemoral, and Central Asian mountain-forest theriocomplexes were present, was located in southern Primorye in Late Pleistocene.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Plant and Animal Ecology, Ural Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Yekaterinburg, Russia. kpa@ipae.uran.ru.
authors.forename: P A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Kosintsev
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biology and Soil Sciences, Far Eastern Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladivostok, Russia.
authors.forename: M P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Tiunov
authors.affiliation: Institute of Plant and Animal Ecology, Ural Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Yekaterinburg, Russia.
authors.forename: D O
authors.initials: DO
authors.lastname: Gimranov
authors.affiliation: Geochronology of the Cenozoic Era Center of Collective Use, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia.
authors.forename: V S
authors.initials: VS
authors.lastname: Panov
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001208:Asia; D005060:Europe; D053476:Extinction, Biological; D049690:History, Ancient; D055110:Radiometric Dating; D013045:Species Specificity; D014070:Tooth / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D001503:Ursidae / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000145:classification*