A Revised Checklist of Mongolian Mammal Species

Authors

V. S. Lebedev, Moscow State University Zoological MuseumFollow
A. A. Bannikova, Moscow State UniversityFollow
Ya. Adiya, Mongolian Academy of SciencesFollow
S. Shar, National University of MongoliaFollow
A. V. Surov, Russian Academy of SciencesFollow

Date of this Version

2016

Document Type

Article

Citation

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei (2016) band 13: 349-360.

Comments

Copyright 2016, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle Wittenberg, Halle (Saale). Used by permission.

Abstract

A revised annotated checklist of Mongolian mammals is presented, supplemented with comments on modifications in species- and genus-level taxonomy introduced over the last 30 years. The checklist includes 140 species compared to 124 species recognized three decades ago by SOKOLOV & ORLOV (1980). Since then, four species were newly described; seven species were registered for the first time on Mongolian territory. Names for more than 20 taxa have changed, on most occasions this change occurred not for purely nomenclatural reasons but rather as a result of taxonomic revisions at the species level which have elevated the rank of many nominal taxa treated previously as subspecies. Recent molecular studies have shown that many widespread Central Asian species, in fact, consist of several highly divergent phylogenetic lineages the taxonomic status of which is yet unclear. Therefore, further updates to our knowledge of mammal biodiversity in Mongolia are expected.