Jan Wagner

National Museum, Prague · Department of Palaeontology

Introduction to the Oldrich Fejfar memory volume with his bibliography and biographic details.

Large omnivores at the top of food webs play a key role in ecosystems, as their ability to feed on multiple trophic levels stabilizes food-web dynamics and impacts ecosystem functioning. However, it is largely unexplored how large omnivores adapt their trophic interactions to altered resource availability under global change, particularly in terres...

During the field work in 2017, a left carnivoran hemi-mandible was found at the locality Valeč-Šibeniční Vrch (= Waltsch-Galgenberg), the Czech Republic. Valeč-Šibeniční Vrch is located on the south-eastern periphery of the complex Doupovské Hory shield volcano (North Bohemia), and is formed by volcanosedimentary series. The hemi-mandible was found...

During the Late Pleistocene (MIS 5e-2), the brown bear Ursus arctos was widespread in the Czech Republic. From this time interval, the species was recorded in 51 Czech localities, including 10 open-air and 41 cave sites. A total of 18 radiocarbon dates obtained from the material showed the presence of the species in this territory 46–12.6 kyr ago d...

Landscape and caves in Bohemian karst, Quternary fossil record

The Amphicyoninae of the early Miocene from the locality of Tuchořice, the Czech Republic, are represented by three species. Two of them are classified within the tribe Amphicyonini: Paludocyon bohemicus (scHlosser, 1899) as the type species of Paludocyon n. gen., and a large-sized amphicyonid determined as Megamphicyon carnutense (anTunes et Ginsb...

The sedimentological record in the Račiška pečina cave sediment sequence is one of the best-preserved cave records of palaeoenvironmental changes for the last 3.4 Ma. However, as it is typical for cave terrestrial records, it contains many hiatuses in sedimentation. The section study helped to change the state of knowledge and understanding of the...

The giant short-faced hyena, Pachycrocuta brevirostris, was the largest and most spectacular bone-cracking hyena that ever existed. Although already extinct long ago, it was extensively distributed across Early and Middle Pleistocene localities throughout Eurasia. P. brevirostris is remarkable for a series of iconic craniodental adaptations in sway...

New Amphicyonidae fossil remains from the early Miocene site of Tuchořice (the Czech Republic) confirm the presence of a new Thaumastocyoninae taxon: Peignecyon felinoides n. gen. et n. sp. It is characterized by a peculiar combination of plesiomorphic and derived morphological traits. The new genus can be defined by a long and sharp mandible diast...

For a long time, it is controversial whether cave bears have ever lived in China during the Pleistocene. Here we checked the published and unpublished bear fossils from Zhoukoudian (North China) housed in Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Palaeoanthropology, CAS and Zhoukoudian Site Museum, and compared them with contemporary cave bears and...

THE EARLY HOLOCENE FAUNAL REARRANGEMENTS IN A HIGH-RESOLUTION FOSSIL RECORD I. Horáček, M. Knitlová, T. Putalová, J. Wagner and S. Čermák Department of Zoology, Charles University Prague National museum Prague Geological Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague *horacek@natur.cuni.cz Keywords: Holocene, Preboreal, mammals, Central Europe Regard...

Canis mosbachensis is a widely distributed species from the Early to Middle Pleistocene in Europe. In Eastern Asia, Canis variabilis was supposed to be a local subspecies of C. mosbachensis, but such hypothesis has never been tested in details. Here we restudied the Canis materials from type locality, Loc.1 of ZKD (Zhoukoudian) of Middle Pleistocen...

Šandalja I palaeocave (“fossil” cave), situated in the southern part of the Istrian peninsula (Croatia), is a well-known locality due to the abundant fossil remains extracted from the bone breccia. It is broadly accepted that the fauna is Middle Villafranchian in age. Since the beginning, the taxonomic status of bear remains has caused controversy...

“Arctonyx” fossil remains from the Liucheng Gigantopithecus Cave, Guangxi, are redescribed and analysed in details. Detailed tooth character differences between Arctonyx and Meles are analysed. It is shown that materials from the Liucheng Gigantopithecus Cave actually belong to two species of Meles: Meles minor and Meles magnus n. sp. At the same t...

Šandalja I palaeocave (“fossil” cave), situated in the southern part of the Istrian peninsula (Croatia), is a well-known locality due to the abundant fossil remains extracted from the bone breccia. It is broadly accepted that the fauna is Middle Villafranchian in age. Since the beginning, the taxonomic status of bear remains has caused controversy...

The material of Machichnus regularis and Machichnus multilineatus was re-examined with respect to the potential tracemaker. New characters were defined for M. multilineatus – scratch profile with flat horizontal bottom and undulated microrelief of scratches. Based on these characters and additional information, both previously suggested tracemakers...

The material of Machichnus regularis and Machichnus multilineatus was re-examined with respect to the potential tracemaker. New characters were defined for M. multilineatus – scratch profile with flat horizontal bottom and undulated microrelief of scratches. Based on these characters and additional information, both previously suggested tracemakers...

The quarry at Chlum Hill near the Srbsko village, disclosed a series of underground spaces during the first half of the 20th century, including the second largest cave system in the Bohemian Karst of that time. Since the beginning, simultaneously with the speleological exploration, a particular attention was given to the deposits yielding fossil bo...

Bear bones and several isolated teeth were found during 2014–2015 excavations deep inside the Martina Cave. The discovery site was within the lower part of a sediment filling of a steeply inclined cave corridor, about 11 m below the surface. The sedimentary fill was excavated by members of the caving club in direction from bottom up, to discover ne...

The material of Machichnus regularis and Machichnus multilineatus was re-examined with respect to the potential tracemaker. New characters were defined for M. multilineatus – scratch profile with flat horizontal bottom and undulated microrelief of scratches. Based on these characters and additional information, both previously suggested tracemakers...

The Lingxiandong Cave(40°12'08.58"N,119°33'46.63"E)is approximately 1.1 km north of the Banchangyu Village of Funing County,Hebei Province,and located 30 km north of Qinhuangdao and 15 km to the northeast of Shanyangzhai of another fossil site.It is a newly discovered fossil site from which a large number of fossil remains of Crocuta ultima were un...

Several fossiliferous sites were studied and material of fossil mammals and molluscs was collected in the Gombasek quarry (Rožňava district, Slovakia) since the 1930's. We have identi-fi ed 9 independent collections of Late Biharian (latest Early to early Middle Pleistocene) mammals and molluscs from this locality. Th e nominal taxon Ursus deninger...

Teeth material of bears from Za Hájovnou Cave was analysed in detail and determined as Ursus cf. deningeri from the Middle Pleistocene sample and as Ursus gr. spelaeus from the Late Pleistocene sample. On the basis of their metric characteristics, the Middle Pleistocene bears are at the evolutionary level of Early/Middle Toringian representatives o...

Molecular phylogeography suggests that Micromys minutus, the sole extant species of the genus, colonized its extensive range quite recently, during the Late Pleistocene-Holocene period. Rich Pliocene and Pleistocene fossil records both from Europe and China suggest rather continuous and gradual in situ phenotype rearrangements from the Pliocene to...

The non-metrical and basic metrical characteristics of studied samples of Micromys in comparison to available literary data. Part 1: M1 and M2, Part 2: m1 and m2. (MicromysS2table.xls file) (XLSX)

List of the European fossil records of Micromys. (DOCX)

To date in the Early Pliocene of Central Europe, the only one well proven, non-Archaeolaginae leporid find was Pliopentalagus dietrichi from its type locality Ivanovce (MN15b, Slovakia). In this study, we extend Central European non-Archaeolagine leporid record by new finds of P. dietrichi from Gundersheim-Findling (MN 15b, Germany) and Trischizola...

The bears from the Late Biharian localities Koněprusy Caves, C 718 and Kozi Grzbiet differ significantly from U. arctos, particularly in morphology of metaconid and entoconid complex of m1. In contrast, they exhibit a number of dental morphometric characters typical for spelaeoid lineage for which we interpret them as the early members of U. dening...

A revision of the currently available mandibular and dental material of bears from the Late Villányian locality Villány 3 (Hun-gary) is provided. The presence of 2 bear species, Ursus cf. gr. etruscus and Ursus ex. gr. minimus-thibetanus, is proved in this locality. In its morphometric features, the latter is not supposed to be an autochthonous des...

A revision of the currently available mandibular and dental material of bears from the Late Villányian locality Villany 3 (Hungary) is provided. The presence of 2 bear species, Ursus cf. gr. etruscus and Ursus ex. gr. minimus-thibetanus, is proved in this locality. In its morphometric features, the latter is not supposed to be an autochthonous desc...

Križna jama is a large river cave located between Loško and Cerkniško poljes under Križna gora Mount in southern Slovenia. It has been known since the mid-19thcentury due to numerous cave bear finds. The cave is filled by complicated sequences of cave fluvial and lacustrine sediments, which are recently partly eroded. We studied two paleontological...

The Pliocene to early Middle Pleistocene bear fauna in Europe can be divided into four main morphophyletic groups. All the known Pliocene bears belong to Ursus ex gr. minimus-thibetanus. They represent at least two migration events (MN 14–MN 15a and MN 15b–MN 16b). Representatives of this group were recorded also in the late MN 17 and in the Lower...

Carnivores from the Late Pliocene site of Včeláre 2 are described and their taxonomy is discussed. The carnivore assemblage includes nine specimens of the families Felidae (Homotherium crenatidens), Ursidae (Ursus minimus), and Ailuridae (Parailurus sp.). The scimitar-toothed cat and ursid are common representatives of the Pliocene European fauna,...

A detailed description of a newly found bear molar (ursid m2 sin.) from the Polish locality Rębielice Królewskie-Kamieniołom przy cmentarzu is given. Based on its character and the comparison with Plio-Pleistocene bears of Europe, this specimen is preliminarily assigned to the Pliocene species Ursus minimus. Nouvelle occurence d'Ursus minimus en te...

The first well defined Pliocene mammalian faunas in the Czech Republic – found at localities Měňany 3 and Vitošov – are reported herein. Pilot samples from the localities have yielded an assemblage of at least 23 taxa of small mammals (Lipotyphla, Chiroptera, Lagomorpha, and Rodentia). The key taxa Mimomys hassiacus, M. cf. gracilis (an advanced fo...

The first well defined Pliocene mammalian faunas in the Czech Republic – found at localities Měňany 3 and Vitošov – are reported herein. Pilot samples from the localities have yielded an assemblage of at least 23 taxa of small mammals (Lipotyphla, Chiroptera, Lagomorpha, and Rodentia). The key taxa Mimomys hassiacus, M. cf. gracilis (an advanced fo...

Anglické resumé

During the 2nd half of 20th century, a succession of new Pleistocene localities was discovered and some classical paleontological sites were revised. From many of those places also bear remains were recorded. Nine localities provided large material of bear remains in good stratified layers. Bear record from Moravian localities were studied in detai...