Finds of Skulls of Juvenile Kurdalagonus maicopicus (Cetacea, Cetotheriidae) in the Upper Miocene of the Republic of Adygea.

Fragments of two skulls of young cetotheriid baleen whales were described from the Fortep'yanka 2 locality (Russia, Republic of Adygea, Maikop district, Fortep'yanka River valley, Upper Miocene, Upper Sarmatian, Blinovskaya Formation). The finds were attributed to Kurdalagonus maicopicus (Spasskii, 1951) based on the morphology of the posterior (mastoid) process of the petrosal bone, the structure of the posterior edge of the temporal fossa, and the S-like shape of the supraoccipital ridges. The skull proportions and the degree of suture closure made it possible to determine the individual age of the whales within a year. New finds significantly complement the data on the structure of the sutures of the lateral wall of the skull and age-related variability of cranial morphology in representatives of the genus Kurdalagonus.

Metacercariae in Coprolites of Seals of the Genus Pachyphoca (Cystophorinae, Phocidae) from the Late Miocene of the North Caucasus.

Coprolites of the seal Pachyphoca volkodavi from the Upper Miocene deposits (Kherson) of the Fortepyanka locality (Republic of Adygea) were studied. Two out of five seal coprolites contained a structure resembling fish muscle tissue and included objects with morphology of trematode metacercariae. Obviously, the larvae of the parasite got into the digestive tract of seals from the fish they ate. Microscopic analysis of the coprolites did not reveal helminth eggs, which indicates possible absence of infection.

First Record of Basilosauridae (Mammalia, Cetacea) in the Eocene of the Krasnodar Territory (Apsheron District, Gorny Luch).

This article describes two lumbar vertebrae, an isolated lumbar vertebra, and two endplates, possibly a thoracic (?) vertebra of a cetacean from the Basilosauridae family, found in 2020 and 2021 in the Upper Eocene light green clays of the Beloglinskaya Formation near the village of Gorny Luch, Apsheron District, Krasnodar Territory. In the shape and structure of the lumbar vertebrae, the whale from the Gorny Luch locality sharply differs from the typical Basilosaurinae. The new find is the first evidence of the presence of basilosaurids in the studied region, which significantly adds to our knowledge of the vertebrate fauna of Beloglinskaya age.

First Discovery of the European Buffalo Bubalus murrensis (Artiodactyla, Bovidae) from the Pleistocene of the Russian Plain.

The skull of a buffalo from the Upper Pleistocene deposits in the Lukerino village near the city of Kolomna (Moscow Region) was found to belong to Bubalus murrensis (Berckhemer, 1927). In Western Europe, this species occurred in the Middle and Late Pleistocene during interglacials. In the Pleistocene of the East European Plain, the fossil Bubalus is discovered for the first time. According to the radiocarbon (14C) analysis of the collagen, the fossil dates to the Allerød interstadial (the age is ca. 12 800 years).

The First Finding of the Late Miocene Baleen Whales of the Genus Zygiocetus (Cetotheriidae, Mysticeti) in Crimea (Melek-Chesme Locality, Kerch Peninsula).

Fragments of four Zygiocetus sp. whale skeletons from the Melek-Chesme locality at the Kerch Peninsula are described. This is the first finding of the representatives of this genus in Crimea.

First Finding of Etruscan Bear (Ursus etruscus, Ursidae, Carnivora) in the Crimea (Taurida Cave, Early Pleistocene).

A fragment of a bear skull with partially preserved dentition is descibed from the Lower Pleistocene deposits of the Taurida cave (Crimea). The presence of P1-P3, the structure of P4, and sizes of the cheek teeth enable the identification of the specimen as Ursus etruscus Cuvier, 1823. The new find is the first in Crimea and the entire Russia and is of great interest due to rarity of this species in the Pleistocene of Eastern Europe.

Occurrence of the Giant Deer of the Genus Arvernoceros in Taurida Cave, Crimea.

The giant deer Arvernocerosverestchagini David, 1992, authochtonous species of the Early Pleistocene biota of North Black Sea coastal area, is discovered in Crimea. The giant deer was a member of fossil fauna of vertebrates from the Pleistocene deposits of Taurida karst cave. According to biochronological data, this fauna is dated to 1.8-1.5 Ma.

The Taurida Cave, a New Locality of Early Pleistocene Vertebrates in Crimea.

We describe a vertebrate assemblage from the Pleistocene deposits of the Taurida karst cave discovered in 2018 in central Crimea (Zuya village, Belogorsk raion). The assemblage is correlated with Late Villafranchian faunas of the Eastern Mediterranean and has an approximate age of 1.8-1.5 Ma.

Investigation of Whalebone from the Miocene Kovran Locality (Kamchatka Krai, Russia).

New information on the microstructures, general morphology, and features of preservation of plates of a whalebone from the Miocene Kovran locality in the Kamchatka Peninsula are provided. The plates have a chevron-like bend which is absent in extant Balaenopteridae, Balaenidae, and Eschrichtiidae. This shape is possibly related to the filtration mechanism characteristic of these whales.

The first find of fossil seals (Phocidae, Carnivora, Mammalia) in the Maikop beds of Kalmykia.

The data on a presumable lumbar vertebra of a fossil seal from the Maikopian beds of Kalmykia are provided. The specimen is confined to a suffocation taphocoenosis.

The first record of Deinotherium (Proboscidea, Mammalia) in the Miocene of Adygea.

The data on an isolated upper tooth (P4) of Deinotherium sp. from the Late Miocene beds of the Maikop 1 locality (Maikop, Republic of Adygea) are reported. This is the first record of Deinotherium from the Upper Miocene of Russia. The tooth crown of P4 is similar in size to D. proavum Eichwald, 1831 (= D. gigantissimum Stefanescu, 1892).