Origins and biogeography of the chub, genus Squalius (formerly within the genus Leuciscus), in the Iberian Peninsula were inferred from comparison between patterns of geographic distribution and phylogenetic relationships among populations belonging to 14 European Squalius species. The phylogeny recovered was based on the complete sequence of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. Squalius specie...

The Ponto-Caspian (Black and Caspian seas) brackish-water fauna represents a special case of the endemic diversification in world's ancient lakes; it also involves a hotspot of continental diversity in the predominantly marine mysid crustaceans. We explored the origins and history of the mysid diversification in a phylogenetic analysis of some 20 endemic Ponto-Caspian species mainly of the genu...

The early Cenozoic topography of the northern Tibetan plateau remains enigmatic because paucity independent paleoelevation constraints. Long-held views northward propagating deformation imply a low Paleogene elevation, but this prediction is speculative. We apply flexural modeling to reconstructed isopach data obtained from Qaidam basin, which requires larger topographic load in Qilian Shan and...

The Caucasus is one of the most important areas for study Paratethyan Neogene phocids, with a number ‘paleorookery’ sites that are still poorly studied. In this study, remains fossil phocine from Late Miocene locality Eldari I (late Vallesian/late Sarmatian s.l.) in Southern described and compared other phocines. new materials obtained site consists right complete forelimb bones along carpal me...