The First Find of Merck's Rhinoceros (Mammalia, Perissodactyla, Rhinocerotidae, Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis Jäger, 1839) Remains in the Russian Far East

Dokl Biol Sci. 2020 Mar;491(1):47-49. doi: 10.1134/S0012496620010032. Epub 2020 Jun 1.

Abstract

Enamel macro- and microstructure has been studied in the teeth of Merck's rhinoceros (Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis Jäger, 1839), woolly rhinoceros (Coelodonta antiquitatis Blumenbach, 1799), and rhinoceroses from the Tetyukhinskaya (44°35' N, 135°36' E) and Sukhaya (43°09' N, 131°28' E) caves in southern Primorye. The teeth from the caves were identified as the teeth of Merck's rhinoceros. Radiocarbon dating and accompanying animal species enabled the dating of Merck's rhinoceros remains to the Late Pleistocene (marine isotope stages 5-2). These finds mark the extreme eastern boundary of the Merck's rhinoceros species range in the Late Pleistocene. The living range reached the Pacific Ocean coast during a certain time interval within this epoch. This was due to the abundance of tree and shrub vegetation in the area during the Late Pleistocene.

Keywords: Late Pleistocene; Russian Far East; Stephanorhinus kirchbergensi; enamel; living range.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Caves
  • Dental Enamel / anatomy & histology
  • Dental Enamel / ultrastructure
  • Fossils*
  • Perissodactyla*
  • Radiometric Dating
  • Siberia
  • Tooth*