SW Siberia Research Articles

Adonis fucensis (A. sect. Adonanthe, Ranunculaceae), a New Species from the Central Apennines (Italy).

Adonis fucensis is herein described as a new species based on morphological and molecular analyses. It is endemic to one locality of the Central Apennines between Amplero and Fucino plains within the NATURA 2000 network in the SAC IT7110205 (Central Italy). The only discovered population is composed of 65 individuals and is at risk of extinction. The conservation status assessment according to IUCN categories and criteria is proposed and discussed. The new species belongs to A. sect. Adonanthe and is morphologically similar to A. volgensis (incl. A. transsilvanica), a species distributed in Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey as well as eastward to SW Siberia and Central Asia. Adonis fucensis can be distinguished from A. volgensis by larger cauline leaves, pentagonal with lobes lanceolate, larger stipules with more lobes and teeth, and larger flowers. Finally, an analytical key to Adonis species belonging to sect. Adonanthe distributed in Europe is presented.

Kaznakhtite, Ni6Co3+2(CO3)(OH)16⋅4H2O, a new natural layered double hydroxide, the member of the hydrotalcite supergroup

AbstractKaznakhtite, ideally Ni6Co3+2(CO3)(OH)16⋅4H2O, is a new member of the hydrotalcite group within the hydrotalcite supergroup. The mineral was discovered at the Kaznakhtinskiy ultrabasic massif, Altai Republic, SW Siberia, Russia. It occurs as powdery aggregates forming flattened lenses up to 1.5 × 0.5 cm and veinlets up to 1 cm long and up to 1 mm thick in aggregates of chrysotile, lizardite, stichtite and dolomite. Other associated minerals include brucite, chromite, heazlewoodite, manganochromite, magnetite and magnesioferrite. Kaznakhtite aggregates are composed of tiny platy grains up to 0.01 mm across. Kaznakhtite is light green and translucent in aggregates. It has an earthy lustre and white streak. Cleavage is micaceous on {001}. Dcalc = 2.864 g cm–3. The mineral is optically uniaxial (–) with ɛ = 1.657(3) and ω = 1.676(3), and weakly pleochroic in greenish hues, ω > ɛ. Chemical composition (wt.%, electron microprobe, Co valence state determined by XANES spectroscopy, CO2 and H2O calculated by stoichiometry) is: MgO 2.15, NiO 47.40, ZnO 0.22, Al2O3 0.16, Cr2O3 0.98, Co2O3 17.42, Cl 0.63, CO2 5.05, H2O 24.60, –O=Cl –0.14, total 98.47. The empirical formula calculated based on the sum of all metal cations = 8 apfu is (Ni5.54Mg0.47Zn0.02)Σ6.03(Co3+1.83Cr0.11Al0.03)Σ1.97C1.00O2.99(OH)15.84Cl0.16⋅4H2O. Infrared spectroscopy confirmed the presence of CO32– anions, OH– groups and H2O molecules. The crystal structure was refined by the Rietveld method with RB = 0.19%. Kaznakhtite is trigonal, space group R͞3m, a = 3.0515 (3), c = 23.180 (3) Å, V = 186.93 (4) Å3 and Z = 3/8. The strongest lines of the powder X-ray diffraction pattern [d, Å (I, %) (hkl)] are: 7.72 (100) (003); 3.863 (24) (006); 2.630 (4) (101); 2.576 (10) (012); 2.294 (6) (015); 1.950 (4) (018); 1.526 (4) (110); and 1.497 (4) (113). Kaznakhtite is a Co3+ analogue of reevesite, Ni6Fe3+2(CO3)(OH)16⋅4H2O. The mineral is named after its type locality.

Formation of Ant (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) Communities on Rock Dumps of an Open-Pit Coal Mine in SW Siberia

We studied the formation of ant communities on rock dumps at coal mine dump sites of different ages and in natural environments in southwestern Siberia. The species composition and diversity were studied by means of plot sampling and line-transect surveys, while the nest density of ants was determined using pitfall traps. Soil pH, turf extent, and vegetation cover were measured and their effects on the formation of ant communities were evaluated. Our results revealed that ants' density and species diversity increased with progressing recovery of the dumps. In the first succession phase, the soil at the dumps was alkaline and sites were inhabited primarily by Tetramorium caespitum. The density and the number of Myrmica sp. and Formica sp. nests increased with here was an increase in with increasing soil acidity. Lasius sp. ants were the first to form significant clusters of nests and to become numerically dominant at all the studied sites.

Geology, mineralization, igneous geochemistry, and zircon U-Pb geochronology of the early Paleozoic shoshonite-related Julia skarn deposit, SW Siberia, Russia: Toward a diversity of Cu-Au-Mo skarn to porphyry mineralization in the Altai-Sayan orogenic system

The small but high-grade (average 1.29% to 2.04% Cu and 0.09–0.12% Mo for different orebodies, with also significant Au contents) Julia skarn Cu-Au-Mo deposit is situated some 30 km northeast from the Sorskoe porphyry Mo-Cu deposit in the Kuznetsk Alatau, a Paleozoic terrane in the northernmost part of the Altai-Sayan orogenic system, part of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. The deposit comprises prograde calcic skarns and later retrograde skarn characterized by abundant andradite-rich garnet defining their oxidized type. These alteration assemblages bear abundant Cu sulfides (chalcopyrite and bornite), which are associated with magnetite and are partially overprinted by weak propylitic and stronger phyllic (carbonate-phyllic) alteration assemblages. Molybdenite is present in these assemblages, and various sulfides and sulfosalts, tellurides, and Bi minerals, as well as native Au are associated with phyllic alteration.The deposit is related to a magnetite-series, I-type, multiphase monzonite-syenite(-quartz syenite)-quartz monzonite-monzogranite igneous complex. Isotopic U-Pb zircon data indicate a Late Cambrian age (∼505 to 485 Ma) of the igneous rocks, whereas their geochemical signatures correspond to high-K calc-alkaline to shoshonitic intrusions emplaced in a post-collisional environment, with possible relationships to a subducted slab break-off. Magmatic evolution included a generation of shoshonitic magma by a low-degree partial melting of the metasomatically-enriched upper mantle, followed by amphibole fractionation in a deep (lower crustal?) magma chamber and then by magma fractionation and emplacement at shallower crustal levels. Although the overall magmatic evolution of the parental intrusions was long-lasting (ca. 20 m.y.), the mineralization is associated with a relatively rapid (ca. 5 m.y.) emplacement of more differentiated granitoid intrusions as well as late mafic dikes.The deposit represents an early Paleozoic (Late Cambrian) Cu-Au(-Mo) mineralization in the Altai-Sayan orogenic system and the broader Central Asian Orogenic Belt, thus confirming the Late Cambrian (to Early Ordovician) Cu-Au-Mo metallogenic event in the region. This, together with the broad regional occurrence of the Cambrian-Early Ordovician igneous complexes and related porphyry/skarn Cu-Au(-Mo) mineralization, emphasizes the early Paleozoic porphyries/skarns as a major regional event prior to much better known late Paleozoic porphyries/skarns in the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. There is a potential of the early Paleozoic terranes to host much more significant Cu-Au(-Mo) mineralization including that of skarn, porphyry and associated types.

The Glafirinskoe and related skarn Cu-Au-W-Mo deposits in the Northern Altai, SW Siberia, Russia: Geology, igneous geochemistry, zircon U-Pb geochronology, mineralization, and fluid inclusion characteristics

The Glafirinskoe and related skarn Cu-Au (+Mo, W) deposits represent an Early Paleozoic (Late Cambrian to very early Ordovician) mineralization in the Altaid Belt, also known as the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. They are associated with multiphase plutons of high-K calc-alkaline to shoshonitic rocks that are related to a low-degree partial melting of metasomatically-enriched upper mantle, followed by amphibole fractionation in a deep (lower crustal ?) magma chamber and then by magma fractionation and emplacement at shallower crustal levels. Isotopic U-Pb zircon dating of the igneous rocks yields early Ordovician (ca. 480–478 Ma and 483 Ma) age. These rocks were emplaced in a continental magmatic arc after the Late Cambrian collision, in a post-collisional setting involving the stall and break-off of the subducting slab during the Late Cambrian to Early Ordovician.The deposits comprise prograde and retrograde skarns that are characterized by abundant andradite-rich garnet, which defines their oxidized type. Wider zones of potassic (quartz-K-feldspar) and calc-potassic (quartz-K-feldspar-calcite-garnet) alteration occur in the igneous rocks, with their further overprint by propylitic (with abundant scapolite) and phyllic (carbonate-phyllic) alteration. All these alteration assemblages bear abundant chalcopyrite and minor bornite. Phyllic alteration assemblages also contain various As, Sb, Pb, Zn, Co, Ni sulfides and sulfosalts, tellurides, Bi minerals, and native Au. Scheelite and/or molybdenite are locally present in some mineralized zones. The Cu-Au-Mo(-W) mineralization occurs as skarn orebodies that are spatially associated with porphyry-style alteration assemblages reflecting the high exploration potential for additional, but concealed, skarn-porphyry Cu-Au-Mo deposits in the vicinity.The retrograde skarn and potassic (calc-potassic) alteration assemblages were formed from high temperature (570–580 °C), high salinity, aqueous chloride magmatic-hydrothermal fluid, with its boiling and phase separation indicating hydrostatic conditions at a relatively deep (~6 km) skarn-porphyry environment. Propylitic alteration assemblages were formed at lower temperatures (~380–420 °C) from a Ca-Na-chloride, low salinity (~8 wt% NaCl-eq.) magmatic-hydrothermal fluid. Fluid inclusions in minerals from phyllic alteration assemblages indicate the influx of a CO2-rich fluid at about 270–290 °C and 1400 ± 50 bars and subsequent mixing with more saline (20 wt% NaCl-eq.) and cooler (~240 °C) hydrothermal fluids.

A new species of Carpenter Moths (Lepidoptera, Cossidae) from Tarbagatai (NE Kazakhstan) and Altai (SW Siberia, Russia) Mountains.

We described a new cossid species, Dyspessa ulgen sp. nov. from the Tarbagatai and Altai Mountains and compared it to other taxa of Dyspessa reported from the region (D. tristis, D. saldaitisi, D. saissanica), as well as to morphologically similar D. ulula. The new species is most closely related to D. ulula but differs from the latter in the characteristics of the male genitalia, wing pattern, and molecular data (a 658 bp fragment of the mitochondrial COI gene).

Cryptic variation in mole voles Ellobius (Arvicolinae, Rodentia) of Mongolia

AbstractThe mole vole subgenus Ellobius is currently considered to include three species: Ellobius talpinus (distributed from SE Europe and Turkmenistan through Kazakhstan to SW Siberia), Ellobius alaicus (S Tianshan, Pamir‐Alay) and Ellobius tancrei (East and West Central Asia, from the Amu‐Darya to Mongolia and N China). A study focusing on the genetic variation in Ellobius from Mongolia was conducted using one mitochondrial and three nuclear markers. Two divergent allopatric lineages endemic to East Central Asia were revealed. The first lineage occurs from Dzungaria eastwards to central Mongolia and represents E. tancrei sensu stricto. The second lineage is found in East Gobi only and corresponds to a taxon described as Ellobius orientalis, which has been traditionally treated as a subspecies of E. tancrei. However, molecular and chromosome data indicate that orientalis is related not to E. tancrei but to E. talpinus, which is separated from the former by a distribution gap of ~2,000 km. The taxonomic status of the East Gobi mole vole is ambiguous, and its genetic distance from E. talpinus s. str. falls into the range characteristic for closely related vole species or semi‐species. According to molecular estimates, the two taxa have been isolated since the late Middle Pleistocene. A similar divergence is observed between the East and West Central Asian lineages of E. tancrei. E. alaicus is placed as sister to the latter rendering E. tancrei sensu lato paraphyletic. The revealed phylogeographic pattern implies that East Central Asia was colonized by mole voles through multiple eastward dispersal events.

Geology, mineralization, fluid inclusion, and stable isotope characteristics of the Sinyukhinskoe Cu-Au skarn deposit, Russian Altai, SW Siberia

The Sinyukhinskoe deposit (>100 t Au with average 9.2 g/t Au) is situated in the Altaid orogenic system and is part of the regional system of Devonian-Carboniferous Cu-Au to Au-Cu porphyry, skarn and other deposits. Productive plutonic suites were emplaced in a Devonian subduction-related continental magmatic arc setting, with its further evolution toward a late- and post-collisional environment in the late Devonian-Carboniferous. The deposit is related to a magnetite-series, I-type multiphase pluton, with the evolution of the intrusive phases from early gabbroic through diorite-granodiorite to the late granitic phases. The igneous rocks belong to medium-K calc-alkaline series or are transitional from medium- to high-K calc-alkaline varieties. Prior to granitic phases, this evolution was interrupted by the intrusion of intramineral high-K mafic dikes exhibiting a shoshonitic affinity.The deposit is characterized by the development of abundant andradite-rich garnet and wollastonite in prograde and retrograde skarns, locally together with magnetite and bornite. The subsequent propylitic (epidote-chlorite-amphibole-albite-calcite-quartz, locally with clinozoisite and prehnite) alteration assemblages bear more intense Cu mineralization (chalcopyrite, bornite, locally tennantite) and high fineness (~940–910‰) native gold. Later phyllic (quartz-sericite to quartz-sericite-chlorite) alteration assemblages comprise the most intense intermediate-fineness (910–880‰) native gold and Cu (bornite, chalcocite) mineralization that is followed by low-fineness (820–760‰) native gold and telluride minerals.The retrograde skarn was formed from a high-salinity (22–23 wt% NaCl-eq.), hot (450 ± 50 °C), high-pressure (2.5 ± 0.5 kbar) homogenous magmatic-hydrothermal fluid, under its possible direct separation from crystallizing magma. After intrusion of intramineral mafic dikes, propylitic alteration assemblages were formed from a moderate salinity (15–18 wt% NaCl-eq.) homogenous aqueous fluid at the temperatures of 380–400 °C. This fluid could be supplied by crystallizing magma, with its further mixing with heated meteoric waters. Fluid inclusions in phyllic alteration minerals indicate a new influx of homogenous, high-salinity (18 wt% NaCl, 22 wt% KCl, 10 wt% CaCl2), high-pressure (1.3 ± 0.1 kbar), aqueous-chloride fluid at lower (~280 °C) temperatures. Elevated Bi, Hg, Te contents, as well as δ34S values close to meteorite standard (0 ± 1.5‰) suggest at least partial fluid sourcing from a mantle-derived magma at the phyllic alteration stage.

Where and when did the Paleo-Asian ocean form?

The closure of the long-lived Paleo-Asian Ocean generated the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB). However, the tectonic history and circumstances of where and when this ocean formed are poorly constrained. We provide a new perspective to help resolve this problem. Three typical magmatic events marked by a 1.75 Ga charnockite, 1.64 Ga gabbro and 1.35 Ga dolerite dykes in SW Siberia are identical with 1.75 Ga anorthosite, 1.63 Ga basalt and 1.35 Ga dolerite sills in the northern North China craton. The youngest coeval dykes/sills (1.35 Ga) and ∼1.35 to 1.25 Ga sedimentary passive margins in both craton margins mark the initial stage of rifting, and therefore the birth of the Paleo-Asian Ocean. Paleomagnetic data indicate that Siberia and North China drifted together and rotated at similar degrees from ～1.6 Ga to ∼1.35 Ga, suggesting the two cratons were close. After 1.35 Ga, North China rotated in an opposite direction away from Siberia, suggesting further expansion of the Paleo-Asian Ocean, which is consistent with the geological record of the CAOB. The separation between Siberia and North China at the 1.35 Ga was a relatively local event with respect to the Nuna supercontinent, and it did not have significant impact on global tectonics and ocean chemistry. The ocean between Siberia and North China opened and closed from 1.35 Ga to 250 Ma, and thus took ∼1.1 Ga to complete, indicating that the Wilson Cycle operates at different time-scales ranging from 100 Ma in a short collisional orogen to 1.1 Ga in a long-lived accretionary orogen.

Environmental context and adaptations of prehistoric and early historical occupation in the Southern Altai (SW Siberia\u2013East Kazakhstan)

The Altai Mountains are well-known for their unique archaeological records, with rich, chronologically sequenced Palaeolithic, Neolithic and the Bronze Age (late fourth–early first millennium BC) sites and, in particular, the Iron Age Scytho-Siberian and early historical monuments represented by burial sites, ritual structures, and rock-art. The Altai prehistoric archaeological localities are distributed across a broad range of topographic and ecological settings, encompassing altitudinal zones from 800 m asl in the lower reaches of glacial river valleys up to 2500/3000 m asl on the high mountain plateaus. The partial spatial overlap of these (often multi-component) geoarchaeological loci over time suggests that similar adaptive strategies were employed by countless generations of hunter and later nomadic communities—their actions constrained by the locally specific forms of (palaeo-)relief and the associated ecosystems. The dynamics of the initial occupation of the boreal and alpine Altai landscapes and subsequent processes of (re-)colonisation during the Final Pleistocene-Holocene transition are directly linked to transformations in the regional hydrological systems after the LGM. The principal settings for early pastoral settlements were the xerothermic grasslands that formed on the flat glacio-lacustrine terraces which rise above the modern fluvial floodplains—the remains of ice-dammed wastage lake basins drained at the end of the Pleistocene (15,000–13,000 year BP). Marked climatic changes, evidenced by regional variations in temperature and humidity across the territory, are well attested in the geological, biotic and archaeological records. The initial Sub-Boreal aridification correlated with the beginnings of the Altai Bronze Age traditions continued until the early Iron Age—causing an expansion of parkland-steppe in the main valleys and a forest retreat in the foothills. Mountain steppes constituted the most essential food-procurement habitat for the Holocene prehistoric and historical settlements of Southern Altai. The current degradation of insular alpine permafrost poses an imminent threat to preservation of the region’s most precious archaeological monuments—the frozen burial mounds of the Pazyryk culture (sixth–third century BC) belonging to the UNESCO World cultural heritage.

Millipede and centipede assemblages on the northern and southern slopes of the lowland Altais, southwestern Siberia, Russia (Diplopoda, Chilopoda).

The total species richness in the myriapod assemblages of the lowland Altais near Charyshskoe Village, Altai Province, southwestern Siberia, Russia is estimated to be at least 19 species from ten genera, eight families, five orders, and two classes. The following species are new to SW Siberia: Lithobius (Ezembius) ostiacorum Stuxberg, 1876, L. vagabundus Stuxberg, 1876, and L. (Monotarsobius) nordenskioeldii Stuxberg, 1876, while L. (E.) proximus Sseliwanoff, 1880 and L. (M.) insolens Dányi & Tuf, 2012 are recorded for the first time from the Altai Province of Russia. A species of Strigamia which is morphologically similar to Strigamia cf. transsilvanica (Verhoeff, 1928) has been found in the study area but its true specific identity is yet to be determined. The seasonal dynamics of myriapod assemblages in terms of the species diversity, density, sex-age structure, and vertical distribution along the soil profile have been studied with regard to the different slope exposures.

Tournaisian (Early Carboniferous) foraminifers of the Kuznetsk Basin (South-West Siberia, Russia)

The Taidon and Fomin formations of the Kuznetsk Basin (SW Siberia, Russia) were sampled in three sections, Old Belovo quarry, Artyshta village and Starobachaty village. The carbonate beds revealed microfacies of bioclastic wackestone and packstone, deposited in the distal parts of inner ramps and the proximal parts of mid ramps. Relatively rare plurilocular foraminifers occur in bioclastic neomicrosparitized wackestone deposited in the shallower parts of the carbonate ramp. The other microfacies only contain the bilocular foraminifer genus Earlandia. The plurilocular foraminifers permit the dating of the lower part of the Taidon Formation and the distinction of a biozone characterized by Tuberendothyra, Pseudoplanoendothyra, and Granuliferella. This local biozone can be correlated with the MFZ4 reference-biozone established in Belgium, which is late Hastarian (i.e., latest early Tournaisian) in age. Conodonts of the upper Siphonodella crenulata Zone in the lower part of Taidon Formation are consistent with this late Hastarian age. The Fomin Formation cannot be directly dated by its foraminifers Earlandia. As it is overlain by previously dated lower Visean beds, the Fomin Formation corresponds to all or part of the entire Ivorian (i.e., late Tournaisian) and of the MFZ5 to MFZ8 biozones. The same uncertainty on the late Tournaisian age exists with the conodonts, which belong to the lower Siphonodella crenulata Zone and isosticha-upper crenulata/typicus/anchoralis-latus zones, respectively. As a taxonomical result, Septabrunsiinoidea n. superfam. is introduced, in order to explain some poorly known lineages of the Tournaisian. Palaeobiogeographically, SW Siberia is proposed as the radiation centre of the Septabrunsiinoidea during the Tournaisian, and especially during the Hastarian, and their migration centre toward three directions: North America, South China and western Tethyan areas.

Genomic insights into a new acidophilic, copper-resistant Desulfosporosinus isolate from the oxidized tailings area of an abandoned gold mine.

Microbial sulfate reduction in acid mine drainage is still considered to be confined to anoxic conditions, although several reports have shown that sulfate-reducing bacteria occur under microaerophilic or aerobic conditions. We have measured sulfate reduction rates of up to 60 nmol S cm(-3) day(-1) in oxidized layers of gold mine tailings in Kuzbass (SW Siberia). A novel, acidophilic, copper-tolerant Desulfosporosinus sp. I2 was isolated from the same sample and its genome was sequenced. The genomic analysis and physiological data indicate the involvement of transporters and additional mechanisms to tolerate metals, such as sequestration by polyphosphates. Desulfosporinus sp. I2 encodes systems for a metabolically versatile life style. The genome possessed a complete Embden-Meyerhof pathway for glycolysis and gluconeogenesis. Complete oxidation of organic substrates could be enabled by the complete TCA cycle. Genomic analysis found all major components of the electron transfer chain necessary for energy generation via oxidative phosphorylation. Autotrophic CO2 fixation could be performed through the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway. Multiple oxygen detoxification systems were identified in the genome. Taking into account the metabolic activity and genomic analysis, the traits of the novel isolate broaden our understanding of active sulfate reduction and associated metabolism beyond strictly anaerobic niches.

Stratigraphy and correlation of Lower-Middle Jurassic sediments in SE West-Siberian petroleum-bearing province

Based on the investigation of Lower-Middle Jurassic sediments in SW Siberia, isochron reference clay and coal horizons confined to the roof of chronostratigraphic units were identified; bed series from pre-Jurassic formation bottom to U10 coal layer were divided; structural features and distribution of regional cyclites J10-J17 in the sequences and throughout the area were determined.

A high-resolution Late Quaternary climatostratigraphic record from Iskitim, Priobie Loess Plateau, SW Siberia

The Siberian loess, being a part of the Eurasian loess belt, has provided the most complete terrestrial record of past climate change in the north-central Asia. The continuous high-resolution sections of aeolian dust deposits inter-bedded with fossil soils from the Priobie Loess Plateau and the Northern Altai Plains – mapped as a part of the 2000 km W–E Siberian palaeoclimate transect – have produced extraordinary evidence of the Late Quaternary climate evolution and landscape development in the parkland-steppe north of the Altai-Sayan Mountains. A complete stratigraphic loess-palaeosol record was studied at the Iskitim reference section, spanning the last c. 250 ka (MIS 7-1). The climate-indicative proxy data (magnetic susceptibility, grain size, %CaCO 3, %TOC) and thin-section studies show marked and cyclic climatic variations, particularly pronounced during the Last Interglacial–Glacial cycle equivalent to the loess reference sites from the Yenisei and Katun/Altai Plain areas (the Kurtak and Krasnogorskoye sections). The Iskitim loess-palaeosol record illustrates a rapid onset of the Last Interglacial in agreement with the marine oxygen isotope records, with a strongly continental warm climate culminating around the peak of the Last Interglacial (MIS 5e). This was succeeded by a dramatic cooling (MIS 5d) defined by a major cryogenic event that resulted in deformation of the MIS 5e chernozem followed by loess deposition in congruence with the Lake Baikal detrital stratigraphic sequence. Cooler climate conditions during the subsequent interglacial sub-stages (MIS 5c and 5a) correspond to shifts in the bioclimatic zonal development, with a gradual replacement of parkland-steppe and mixed southern taiga by boreal forest, and by cold arid periglacial tundra-steppe during the stadial sub-stages (MIS 5d and 5b). Following the most intensive loess sedimentation during the early Last Glacial (MIS 4), a new cycle with warm and very cold climate variations characterises the mid-Last Glacial interstadial interval (MIS 3), with most favourable surface-stabilisation phases represented by cryogenically distorted parkland chernozem soils. The Iskitim loess-palaeosol sequence, characterised by intensive syndepositional pedogenic processes, provides unique evidence of a dynamic climate change during the Late Quaternary in the continental north-central Asia and a linkage site for transcontinental Eurasian correlations of high-resolution loess records.

Late Devonian radiolarians from the Rudny Altai (SW Siberia)

Late Devonian radiolarians from the Rudny Altai (SW Siberia)

Pleistocene climate change, natural environments and palaeolithic occupation of the Altai area, west-central Siberia

Diversity of the relief and the Pleistocene environments of the mountain areas of SW Siberia played a major role in the history of the palaeolithic peopling of this territory. The geographical and contextual distribution of the cultural records reflects a climatic instability in the Altai area. Palaeoenvironmental proxy data indicate that the natural conditions during the earlier stages were generally more favourable for early human occupation than during the later stages. The cyclic nature of the glacial and interglacial periods led to periodic landscape transformations and generation of specific ecosystems adjusted to particular topographic settings and responding to climatic variations. The initial occupation of the broader Altai region associated with “pebble-tool” industries from alluvial formations likely occurred during some of the Middle Pleistocene interglacials accompanying the northern expansion of the temperate zone and biota. Mixed coniferous and broadleaf forests established in the tectonically active mountain zone with elevations of 1500–2000 m and parklands in the adjacent plains and continental basins provided a wide range of occupation habitats. There is limited evidence for persistence of Early Palaeolithic inhabitation during glacial stages due to inhospitable periglacial conditions. The last interglacial warming, indicated by re-colonization of southern Siberia by coniferous taiga forests, is linked with the appearance of the Mousterian tradition. Changes in the relief configuration influenced the local climate regime and opened new habitats for the Middle Palaeolithic population concentrated in the transitional zones of 500–1000 m elevation in the karstic area of the NW Altai foothills. Occupation of the central and southern Altai during the early last glacial was impeded by harsh, ice-marginal environments and expansion of glaciers in the valleys filled by large proglacial lakes. Progressive warming during the early mid-last glacial interstadial stage (59–35 ka BP) caused wasting of the ice fields accompanied by cataclysmic releases of ice-dammed lakes and large-scale erosional processes. Periodic outbursts of the glacial basins had a dramatic impact on the regional ecosystems, also obliterating the earlier cultural records. Appearance of the transitional early Late Palaeolithic stone industries reflects adaptation to mosaic interstadial habitats, including sub-alpine forest, dark coniferous forest, mixed parklands and open steppe. The identical geographical distribution of the Middle and Late Palaeolithic sites and the time-transgressive lithic technologies suggest a regional cultural (and biological?) continuity in the broader Altai area during the Late Pleistocene. Re-establishment of cold tundra–steppe and tundra–forest habitats correlates with the Late Palaeolithic horizon with developed stone industries dominated by blade-flaking techniques. These techniques possibly survived in more protected locations characterized by warm microclimates in the northern Altai throughout the last glacial maximum (20–18 ka BP). Emergence of the microlithic assemblages with wedge-shape cores is linked with a new cultural adjustment in the final stage of the Palaeolithic development responding to transformations of the former periglacial ecosystems towards the end of the Pleistocene.

Taxonomy and phylogeny of theParanourosorex lineage, Neogene of Eurasia (Mammalia: Soricidae: Anourosoricini)

Paranourosorex remains from 14 Miocene and Pliocene localities in Inner Mongolia (China) and SW Siberia (Russia, Kazakhstan) are referred to a detailed biochronological sequence. The fossils are considered to represent a single evolutionary lineage which ranges in time from late middle Turolian (MN 12) through late early Ruscinian (MN 14). The lineage is subdivided into 5 species, including the previously describedP. gigasRzebik-Kowalska 1975 from Poland.Neomys inexspectatusSchlosser 1924 is assigned toParanourosorex, andP. seletiensis n.sp. is described as new. All taxa are diagnosed. Evolutionary changes within theParanourosorex lineage over a period of about 1.5 my are discussed. Intratribal comparisons suggest 3 anourosoricine clades during the Mio/Pliocene of Eurasia, consisting of 1)Crusafontina, 2) Paranourosorex, and 3)Anourosorex andAmblycoptus.

Stratigraphic and palaeogeographic distribution of Palaeozoic oolitic ironstones

Abstract The record of Palaeozoic oolitic ironstones reflects second-order Phanerozoic sea-level changes. Middle Cambrian- earliest Ordovician high stand: scattered ironstones developed on low-latitude Laurentia and locally on high southern-latitude NW Africa and Nova Scotia. Early-early Late Ordovician high stand: major and scattered minor ironstones were widespread on high southern-latitude N Africa and Peri-Gondwanan blocks. Minor ones on C Laurentia, NE and SW Baltica, SW Kazakhstan, and NW and SW Siberia, NW Malaysia, and C Australia accumulated in middle and low latitudes, as did all later Palaeozoic ironstones. Latest Ordovician-earliest Silurian low stand: during southern-latitude glaciation minor ironstones were limited to WC Algeria and low-latitude C and SE Laurentia. Early-early Late Silurian high stand: minor ironstones accumulated on NC, WC, and SE South America, N Africa, and Peri-Gondwanan blocks, while major ones developed on NW Africa and CE Laurentia. Latest Silurian-Early Devonian low stand: major ironstones developed on WC Algeria; minor ones on CE Laurentia, several Peri-Gondwanan blocks, N and W Africa, NC South America, and South China. Middle-early Late Devonian high stand: major ironstones accumulated on N Africa, SE Baltica, NW Iberia, and South China; minor ones on SW and CE Laurentia, and NW and SE Middle Europe. Latest Devonian-earliest Carboniferous low stand: well-developed latest Devonian ironstones were limited to N Africa and NW Middle Europe, minor ones to SE Middle Europe and CE Laurentia; minor earliest Carboniferous ones to NW Middle Europe and NC Africa.